Dhaka, Oct. 21 -- I have recently delivered a paper at a seminar organised by the Centre for Bay of Bengal Studies (CBoBS) at Independent University, Bangladesh, where I concluded that there is a severe deficit in maritime education. There is no alternate to knowledge, and until we establish a knowledge-based society, our advancement will remain stagnant in all areas, including maritime trade, preventing us from achieving our desired socio-economic progress. Moreover, most individuals who are not seafarers or professionals involved in maritime safety regulations and surveys within commercial shipping have very little understanding of maritime trade. Other facets of society, such as the media, mirror this deficiency, often rushing into rep...