India's maritime authority is the Directorate General of Maritime Administration (DGMA). It has given a new order to licensed manning agencies. These agencies find jobs at sea for seafarers. The agencies must stop sending Indian seafarers to ships that work only in Sarawak, Malaysia. This means ships that work only on Sarawak's inland waters, rivers, coast or in its ports. The order is DGMA Circular 66 of 2026, dated 8 October 2026. A circular is an official notice. It says accidents that killed young Indian seafarers working in Malaysia have happened "year after year".
What the circular says
The DGMA says most of these accidents involved Indian seafarers on small boats. These boats worked in Malaysian rivers and coastal waters. India and Malaysia have held talks about this. In these talks, the Malaysia Marine Department shared what it had found. It also recommended steps to prevent more accidents. The steps cover recruitment, sending seafarers to jobs, and joining and leaving ships (sign-on and sign-off). The ban is based on that recommendation. The circular does not say how many seafarers have died.
The DGMA gave this order under Section 301 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025. Indian recruitment agencies need a licence called the RPSL (Recruitment and Placement Service Licence). No agency with an RPSL may recruit, place or send Indian seafarers to these ships. Agencies may not handle any offer letter, employment contract or wage agreement for these jobs. If an agency takes part in such a job, this counts as work outside its licence. A copy of the circular went to the High Commission of India (India's embassy) in Kuala Lumpur.
The circular gives only this one order. It covers only ships that work just in Sarawak's inland waters, rivers, coast or port limits. On its own, it does not ban Indian seafarers from other ships under the Malaysian flag.
Insurance check before joining any foreign ship
The Hindu, an Indian newspaper, reported the ban on 16 October. It also reported a related insurance rule. This is DGMA Order 22 of 2026, dated 28 August 2026. Under this rule, the RPSL agency must check a ship before it sends an Indian seafarer to it. This applies to any ship. The ship must have valid P&I cover. P&I (protection and indemnity) insurance protects shipowners against claims, including claims from crew. The cover can come from a member of the International Group of P&I Clubs. The International Group (IG) is the main group of P&I insurers, called clubs. The cover can also come from an insurer outside this group (a non-IG insurer). That insurer must be on the DGMA's approved list.
Some ships do not have this cover. Then the agency must buy insurance of at least ₹1 crore (10 million rupees) for each Indian seafarer. The insurer must be an Indian insurer approved by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA). Or it can be a P&I provider approved by the DGMA. Some seafarers are already on board ships without recognised cover. For them, the agency has one month to act. It must arrange this insurance. If it does not, it must sign the seafarers off at the earliest port of call. Then it must send them home to India (repatriate them).
Order 22 adds to an earlier rule, DGMA Order 08 of 2026. That order was issued on 14 May 2026. It is about preventing the abandonment of Indian seafarers on foreign-flag ships. Foreign-flag ships are ships registered in other countries. Abandonment means the shipowner leaves the crew alone, for example without pay or a way home.
What it means for seafarers
Someone may offer you a job on a river, coastal or harbour boat in Sarawak. A licensed Indian agency is not allowed to handle this job. Be very careful with such an offer.
Before you join any foreign-flag ship, ask the agency which P&I club covers the ship. If the ship has no recognised P&I cover, ask for proof of the ₹1 crore insurance.
Join only through an agency with a valid RPSL licence. Keep copies of your contract and the insurance details.
To get help or report a problem, contact the DGMA's 24x7 grievance (complaint) helpline. It is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Phone 1800-889-7768. This number is toll-free (free to call) in India. For calls from abroad, use +1-888-988-0256. This is a US toll-free number. WhatsApp: +91 8655856830. Email: enavik.24x7@gov.in. You can also make a complaint on the e-Navik grievance portal.
Another rule is DGMA Circular 67 of 2026, dated 9 October. Under it, training institutes and licensed recruitment agencies must now show these helpline contacts. The contacts must be in English and Hindi. They must be at entrances, in reception areas and on notice boards.
Cover photo: A river express boat at Sibu wharf on the Rajang River, Sarawak, in July 2008. The photo is illustrative. Photo: SpOt ON/Wikimedia Commons, public domain.
Sources: DGMA Circular 66 of 2026: Recruitment/deployment of Indian seafarers on Malaysian flagged vessels (8 Oct 2026), DGMA Order 22 of 2026: Additional requirements regarding P&I/insurance coverage for Indian seafarers on foreign flag vessels (28 Aug 2026), DGMA Circular 67 of 2026: Prominent display of DGMA 24x7 grievance redressal contact information (9 Oct 2026), DGMA: e-Navik 24x7 grievance redressal mechanism, The Hindu: DGMA bans deployment of Indian seafarers in Malaysia's Sarawak region (16 Oct 2026).
