🇮🇳 Marine Engine Independence: Why the DMET Fraternity Can Power India's Propulsion Revolution

Prateek Khanna
3 days ago
6 min read

🔧 Introduction: India’s Shipbuilding Surge, But a Missing Engine

India is finally stepping into its maritime destiny. With the 2025 Union Budget laying the groundwork for a ₹25,000 crore Maritime Development Fund, customs exemptions, infrastructure upgrades, and global partnerships, the country has declared its intent to become one of the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047.

Yet beneath this ambitious voyage lies a dangerous blind spot: the engines that power our ships are almost entirely imported.

Today, over 90% of marine engines rated above 6MW—the class used in cargo vessels, naval platforms, and oil tankers—are sourced from five global OEMs: MAN Energy Solutions, Wärtsilä, Rolls-Royce, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Caterpillar-MaK. These engines are embedded with proprietary software, locked with IP controls, and depend on foreign supply chains vulnerable to diplomatic breakdowns, sanctions, or export bans.

Without the ability to manufacture our own large marine propulsion systems, India’s maritime ambitions are sailing on borrowed power.

But all is not lost. The solution lies within us.

It lies in an institution born in independent India. It lies in a brotherhood built over seven decades.It lies in the DMETians.

⚓ DMET: A Cradle of Marine Engineering Excellence

Founded in 1949, the Directorate of Marine Engineering Training (DMET), now part of the Indian Maritime University (IMU) system, was India's first and most elite institution dedicated to marine engineering.

Across its campuses at Kolkata (Taratala Road) and Mumbai (Hay Bunder), DMET (Kolkata) has trained ten thousand plus marine engineers who have powered the nation’s fleet, managed global shipping companies, driven technological advancements, and represented India on every ocean.

DMETians have built a legacy of:

Hands-on technical mastery in engines, propulsion systems, hydraulics, and shipboard machinery
Operational experience in extreme marine conditions—from icy Arctic routes to corrosive equatorial waters
Global leadership, managing shipping giants, designing systems, leading classification societies and policy bodies

But perhaps more importantly, they’ve cultivated a shared spirit of resilience, innovation, and service. That spirit is now needed more than ever.

🔍 Why DMETians Are the Key to Building India’s Own Marine Engines

1. 🧠 End-to-End Domain Expertise

DMETians aren’t textbook engineers—they are engine room veterans. They understand combustion behavior, heat exchange, fluid dynamics, metallurgical wear, and system failures not just in theory, but through lived experience.

Designing a large propulsion engine requires expertise in:

Tribology and thermodynamics
Fuel injection and emissions control
Vibration analysis and structural harmonics
High-temperature metallurgy
SCADA and control systems

These are the core disciplines embedded in the DMET training model since the 1950s. No other institution in India combines all of these within a real-world marine context.

2. 🌍 A Global Professional Network That Can Be Activated

DMETians are present in every major shipping and marine engineering company across the globe—from Shell and Maersk to DNV, ABS, NYK, Mitsui, and beyond. This network is a goldmine of global knowledge and technology exposure that can be mobilized through:

International reverse-engineering collaborations
Technology transfers through alumni-led firms
Global research partnerships on emission control, hydrogen propulsion, and tribological coatings

When leveraged collectively, this alumni network can replicate the model of ISRO’s propulsion ecosystem—indigenous, iterative, and deeply collaborative.

3. 🧪 R&D Capacity Through IMU and Industry Partnerships

The Kolkata campus of IMU (formerly DMET) has been declared a Centre of Excellence for Marine Engineering under Maritime Vision 2030. It boasts:

Fully equipped machine and welding workshops
State-of-the-art simulators for main engine operation
Labs for automation, control, fluid dynamics, and vibration analysis
A 75-year legacy of academic-industry integration

With public and alumni support, the campus can be upgraded into a National Propulsion Research Hub—focused exclusively on designing and prototyping 6 MW to 30 MW marine engines for India’s needs.

4. 💡 Start-Up Ecosystem of Marine Innovators

Unlike conventional engineering institutions, DMETians are not just engineers—they are creators and problem-solvers. Many alumni have founded or led companies in:

Marine electronics and control automation
Emission-reduction technologies (scrubbers, BWTS)
Maintenance AI for predictive engine diagnostics
Engine spare part manufacturing and 3D reverse engineering

With the right incubation support, this community can build India’s first full-stack marine engine tech ecosystem—from design to diagnostics.

🛤️ A National Roadmap for Marine Engine Independence — Led by DMETians

To truly become Atmanirbhar in marine propulsion, India needs to take a mission-mode approach. Here’s what it could look like with DMETians at the helm:

Action Area	Proposed Initiative	Led By
Engine Design	National Marine Propulsion Task Force	IMU, Kirloskar, CSL, DMET Alumni
Metallurgical Innovation	R&D for high-temperature alloys	BARC, IIT-M, DRDO + DMET R&D leaders
Engine Testing	Build Testbeds for 6–30 MW engines	IMU-Kolkata & GSL, GRSE
Start-up Incubation	Marine Tech Innovation Lab	DMET Entrepreneurs + SIDBI + DPIIT
Software + ECU Development	Open-source ECU and SCADA stack	CDAC, NIC, IMU, DMET-aligned firms
Policy	National Marine IP Strategy	Ministry of Shipping + EAC-PM + Alumni Think Tanks

🚀 Let the Spirit of Taratala Rise Again

From a humble beginning in 1949 to producing global maritime leaders, DMET has always risen to the occasion. Now, as India aims to power its own future, it must once again turn to the men and women it trained.

Let India say, once and for all:

“We built the ship, we designed the engine, and we sailed under our own flag.”

The sea is calling.

And the DMETians are ready to power the revolution.

Jai Hind. Jai Bharat, Jai Taratala.

🛠️ DMECA: The Bridge Between Legacy, Leadership, and National Marine Sovereignty

As India embarks on its journey toward marine engine self-reliance, it is not just the present cadets or alumni who must lead the charge—but the organised strength of the entire DMET fraternity. And at the heart of this collective lies a strategic force: DMECA – The DMET-MERI Ex-Cadets Association.

DMECA is not just an alumni group. It is a global networked community of seasoned DMETIans (1100+ & Counting), including shipowners, chief engineers, superintendents, classification experts, defense technocrats, entrepreneurs, educators, and innovators. With its global reach and deep institutional memory, DMECA is uniquely positioned to drive India’s marine propulsion revolution forward.

Here’s how:

1. 🧩 Convergence Platform for Public-Private Collaboration

DMECA can act as a neutral coordination body between:

IMU and academic research institutions
The Indian Navy, Coast Guard, and DG Shipping
Engine builders like Kirloskar, BHEL, and L&T
Shipbuilders like Cochin Shipyard, GRSE, and GSL
Startups and marine tech entrepreneurs
Government ministries and regulators

By leveraging its credibility and industry ties, DMECA can catalyze national-level public-private partnerships for marine engine design, prototyping, and scaling.

2. 🔬 Knowledge Capital for Indigenous Design

DMECA is home to hundreds of retired and active marine technical experts—many of whom have worked directly on:

2-stroke and 4-stroke marine engines
Fuel systems, turbochargers, and cylinder liner technologies
Retrofits for dual-fuel and LNG engines
Emission-reduction systems like SCR and scrubbers

This collective wisdom is untapped R&D gold. DMECA can mobilize retired experts into an Engine Design Advisory Board, offering their domain knowledge to younger innovators and policymakers.

3. 🎓 Mentorship and Capacity Building

DMECA members can serve as mentors and technical reviewers for projects undertaken by:

IMU students and researchers
Indian Navy propulsion design teams
Marine tech startups and incubators
DRDO or Ministry of Shipping R&D missions

Workshops, webinars, technical deep-dives, and IP clinics run by DMECA can ensure that young Indian innovators don’t start from zero—but from wisdom hard-earned across oceans.

4. 🛠️ Prototyping, Testing & Field Trials via Alumni Firms

Many DMETians today run shipping companies, ship repair yards, and tech startups. DMECA can coordinate a testbed program across alumni-operated firms and yards for:

Prototype engines under 10 MW
Retrofit emission control devices
Hybrid propulsion systems for coastal fleets
Indigenous ECU and control modules

This network can accelerate lab-to-sea adoption of Indian-made propulsion systems, bypassing bureaucratic hurdles through a trust-based alumni ecosystem.

5. 📢 Policy Advocacy with Purpose

DMECA holds institutional memory and stature. It can act as a think tank and policy voice to:

Advise the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways
Advocate for dedicated marine engine R&D funds
Suggest DG Shipping reforms for IP neutrality
Recommend IMU curriculum revamps and industry internships
Lobby for Make in India procurement mandates for engines

By positioning itself as a strategic knowledge partner, DMECA can influence national marine policy with both vision and realism.

🔗 From Brotherhood to Nation-Building

What began in the corridors of Taratala and Hay Bunder has now grown into a global technical community bound by a shared ethos. DMECA is not just preserving the legacy of marine engineering excellence—it is the torchbearer of India’s maritime future.

If India is to truly build its own marine engines, then the designers, mentors, test pilots, reviewers, and champions must come from within.

And no organisation is better equipped than DMECA to align this mission with momentum.