Section 5. The salient features of the proposed Inland Vessels Bill, 2021, inter alia, are

5. The salient features of the proposed Inland Vessels Bill, 2021, inter alia, are— (i) to empower the Central Government to provide uniformly the applicable standards for seamless and safe navigation of inland vessels by rules; (ii) to empower the State Governments to declare by notification any inland water area into Zones depending on the maximum significant wave height criteria; (iii) to empower the Central Government to provide the standards to classify and categorise mechanically propelled inland vessels, standards and processes involved in registration of vessels, standards for identification and categorisation of special category vessels, issuance of certificate of registry, training and minimum manning scales by rules; (iv) to enable the State Governments to implement the provisions in compliance with the standards and measures as may be provided by rules by the Central Government; (v) to provide for a central data base, e-portal for registration and crew data base; (vi) to provide for new requirements of life safety, fire safety, navigational aids and communication appliances by rules to be made by the Central Government; (vii) to empower the Central Government to provide the permissible limits of discharge of certain pollutants, such as sewage and to provide for issue of prevention of pollution certificate as a compliance requirement by rules; (viii) to provide for wreck and salvage and to empower the State Governments to appoint Receiver of Wreck; (ix) to introduce provisions regarding principles of liability and limitation of liability, which improvises and expands the concept of insurance to ensure secure trade and trade practices; (x) to introduce improvised provisions pertaining to casualties and investigation and also to provide for preliminary inquiry and formal investigation; (xi) to provide for revised penalties and punishments so as to ensure deterrence of wrong doers and compliance with the provisions; (xii) to introduce a new Chapter to make provisions for regulation and governance of the unregulated sector of non-mechanically propelled inland vessels, and to empower the State Governments to provide for the minimum regulations on such non-mechanically propelled inland vessels; (xiii) to provide for composition of offences punishable with fine only; (xiv) to repeal the Inland Vessels Act, 1917. 6. The notes on clauses explain in detail the various provisions of the Bill.