DGMA Reconstitutes Complaint Committee on Harassment of Women Seafarers
India’s Directorate General of Maritime Administration (DGMA), headquartered in Mumbai, has reconstituted its Complaint Committee on Sexual Harassment of Women Seafarers at Workplace. DGMA Order No. 29 of 2026, dated 2 November and signed by Director General Shyam Jagannathan, sets up the new committee for two years from 2 November 2026.
The committee is formed under Section 4 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, often called the POSH Act. DGMA first set up such a committee in January 2023 and renewed it in 2024 and earlier in 2026. The term of the previous committee has now ended.
The new nine-member committee is chaired by Ms Ambika Singh, Senior Manager and PRO of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA). Its members come from across the maritime sector. They include a woman chief engineer, a maritime psychologist, representatives of the seafarer welfare charity ISWAN and the Maritime Union of India’s Women’s Wing, a shipping association, a maritime training institute, and DGMA’s Deputy Director General (Welfare) and Welfare Counsellor.
The committee will examine complaints of sexual harassment raised by women seafarers with the Director General, whether through the e-Navik portal or by other means. After looking into each case, it will send its report and recommendations to DGMA, as the 2013 Act requires.
The number of Indian women at sea has been growing steadily, and a working complaint system is an important part of making ships safe and respectful workplaces for them. Women seafarers who face harassment on board or at work have a formal route to raise complaints with India’s maritime administration, and a committee that includes experienced seafarers, welfare experts and union representatives to hear them.
For more details, please follow this link on the official DGMA website.
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