International Cargo Operations at Airports

Any airport along with terminal for passengers should also provide space for Air Cargo movement. The passenger and Cargo terminal may provide either domestic movement alone, or both domestic and international movement. A Cargo terminal is used for the movement of Export and Import Cargo at the airport, and requires the presence and services of airlines and Customs. It consists of Export shed for handling Export Cargo and Import shed for handling Import Cargo.

The different modes of transport include Air, Water, Road and Rail transportation. Although Air transportation is costlier than the other, it is opted if there is an urgent requirement of the product, transportation time constraints for express or courier shipments and for goods like medicines or perishable goods. There are various types of aircrafts for carrying passengers or cargo or both. There are various authorities who certify the standard of transportation, handling and storage services and the major certifications include ISO, CEIV, AEO and RA.

The webinar session conducted by JBS Academy on the topic International Cargo Operations at Airports was taken by Mr. Sushant Nigam who is a Logistician with about 38 years of experience in international cargo. He also provides consultancy in various aspects of international cargo like regulatory issues and Process Re-engineering.

The webinar session titled International cargo operations at airport was attended by a total of 140 students, and the recorded webinar is available in our YouTube channel. 

Understanding Odd Dimension Cargo and RORO

Odd dimension Cargo includes materials that are used for projects in various industries and sectors like oil, gas and agriculture. Any material which is above the standard measurement for general Cargo is called Odd dimension Cargo. Out of Gauge Cargo or OOG refers to Cargo which far exceeds the dimensions of a normal shipping container of the dimension 20/40’ by length width and height, which need special equipments for loading and transporting.

The RORO shipping stands for Roll-on/ Roll-off and refers to the carriers which are used to carry vehicles or wheeled Cargo. These ships are specially designed with built in ramps to allow cars and other vehicles to easily slide in and out of the ship. The RORO vessels are of different types and includes Pure Car Carrier (PCC), Pure Car and Truck carrier (PCTC), and Container Vessel + RORO(CONRO). The RORO vessels are very important as they save time. Special attention is required for this type of shipping as the possible damage could be huge in terms of finance which may affect the business badly.  

 The webinar session on the differences between the two modes of transport conducted by JBS Academy was engaged by Professor Manisha Thaker, an Expert in Logistics and Freight Forwarding with an experience of about 20 years. She has managed many odd dimension and breakbulk Cargo projects and has served many manufacturing companies. 

 The webinar session on the topic Understanding Odd dimension Cargo and RORO was attended by about 151 students. The recorded webinar is available in our You Tube channel. 

What are the key aspects of FEMA and How it is Associated with International Business?

India is under FEMA or Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 which came into effect on 1st June 2000. Any action or act by an individual in India is regulated under FEMA and so, it is mandatory to have an understanding of the provisions of FEMA before entering into Foreign Exchange business. The concept of FEMA originated during the balance of payment crisis of 1990- 1991. FEMA came into effect on 1st of June 2000 replacing FERA, 1973. FEMA comprises of 49 clauses while FERA had 81 sections and out of the 49, the first 15 are much important. It extends to the whole of India, and applies to all branches, offices and agencies outside India which is owned or controlled by a resident of India.

There are many organizations that are authorised for framing of rules and regulations and monitor the transactions under FEMA. The most important ones are the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, Ministry of Commerce, Reserve Bank, Foreign Exchange Dealers Association of India ,Export promotion council, EXIM bank, ECGC, ADs, FFMCs , GIC, Shipping & Airlines companies, and Exporters& Importers. The objective of FEMA, 1999 is to consolidate and amend the law relating to foreign exchange and facilitating external trade and payments and promoting orderly development and maintenance of foreign exchange market in India.

The webinar session organized by JBS Academy on FEMA was engaged by Mr. Kishor Bhatt, an expert logistician with over 54 years experience. He is a retired bank executive who is a chattered member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. Mr. Bhatt is the author of about 22 books in the field of International Business and has contributed many scholarly articles to various magazines and publications.

The webinar session titled ‘FEMA- Understanding all aspects’ was attended by about 181 students. You can watch the recorded video of the webinar which is available in our YouTube channel.