{"id":42211,"date":"2025-04-28T19:40:30","date_gmt":"2025-04-28T14:10:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=42211"},"modified":"2025-04-28T21:47:03","modified_gmt":"2025-04-28T16:17:03","slug":"india-claim-over-continental-shelf-in-arabian-sea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/28-04-2025\/india-claim-over-continental-shelf-in-arabian-sea","title":{"rendered":"India\u2019s Claim Over Continental Shelf in Arabian Sea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS1\/Geography; GS2\/Global Groupings &amp; Agreements<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India has strategically expanded its claim in the <strong>Central Arabian Sea<\/strong>, adding nearly 10,000 square kilometers to its <strong>Extended Continental Shelf (ECS).<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About the Continental Shelf<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is a critical concept in maritime law, defined under the <strong>United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It refers to the <strong>submerged extension of a country&#8217;s landmass<\/strong>, stretching from the coastline to the deep ocean floor.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Coastal nations<\/strong> have sovereign rights over their continental shelf for exploring and exploiting natural resources, such as minerals, oil, and gas.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>India\u2019s Expanding Claims<\/strong><br>&#8211; <strong>Recent Addition in the Arabian Sea:<\/strong> According to the <strong>National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa<\/strong>, India\u2019s seabed and sub-seabed area could nearly equal its land area of 3.274 million square kilometers.<br>&#8211; <strong>Modified Strategy:<\/strong> In response to Pakistan\u2019s objections over disputed areas in the Western Arabian Sea, the <strong>Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) rejected India\u2019s entire claim<\/strong> in the region in March 2023.<br>1. Recently, India restructured its claims <strong>into partial submissions,<\/strong> securing uncontested areas while leaving disputed regions for bilateral discussion.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and Beyond<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Nations are entitled to an <strong>EEZ extending 200 nautical miles<\/strong> from their coastline, granting exclusive rights to fishing, mining of&nbsp; minerals, polymetallic nodules, and resource extraction like oil reserves.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India currently possesses <strong>12 nautical miles of territorial sea and 200 nautical miles of EEZ.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Beyond the EEZ, countries can claim an <strong>ECS<\/strong> if they provide scientific evidence to the <strong>CLCS<\/strong> that the shelf is a <strong>natural extension of their landmass.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"68a4a7\" data-has-transparency=\"true\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Exclusive-Economic-Zone-EEZ-and-Beyond-1024x576.png\" alt=\"Exclusive Economic Zone EEZ and Beyond\" class=\"has-transparency wp-image-42212\" style=\"--dominant-color: #68a4a7; width:586px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Exclusive-Economic-Zone-EEZ-and-Beyond-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Exclusive-Economic-Zone-EEZ-and-Beyond-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Exclusive-Economic-Zone-EEZ-and-Beyond-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Exclusive-Economic-Zone-EEZ-and-Beyond.png 1370w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>UNCLOS and the CLCS<\/strong><br>&#8211; UNCLOS, adopted in 1982, provides the<strong> legal framework<\/strong> for defining and claiming the continental shelf.<br>&#8211; The <strong>CLCS, established under UNCLOS,<\/strong> reviews scientific data submitted by countries and makes recommendations on the outer limits of their continental shelf.<br><strong>Process of Claiming a Continental Shelf Under UNCLOS<\/strong><br>&#8211; <strong>Scientific Evidence:<\/strong> Nations must provide detailed scientific data proving that the <strong>continental shelf is a natural extension of their landmass<\/strong> to the seabed.<br>1. It includes geological and geophysical surveys, bathymetric mapping, and sediment analysis.<br>&#8211; <strong>Submission to the CLCS:<\/strong> It includes technical data and maps outlining the proposed boundaries.<br>&#8211; <strong>Review and Recommendations:<\/strong> The CLCS reviews the submission and may request additional data or modifications.<br>1. It provides recommendations on the outer limits of the continental shelf, which are binding once accepted.<br>&#8211; <strong>Resolving Overlaps:<\/strong> If the claimed area overlaps with another country&#8217;s continental shelf, bilateral negotiations or agreements are required to resolve disputes.<br>&#8211; <strong>Final Approval:<\/strong> Once the CLCS recommendations are accepted, the claiming nation gains rights to explore and exploit resources in the ECS, including minerals, oil, and gas.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Navigating Geopolitical Challenges<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Sir Creek Dispute: <\/strong>Located in the marshes of the Rann of Kutch, continues to challenge India\u2019s maritime claims.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Pakistan raised objections to portions of India\u2019s ECS submission, citing overlaps near the maritime border.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Oman Overlap:<\/strong> India\u2019s ECS in the Arabian Sea overlaps with Oman\u2019s claims; however, <strong>an Agreement in 2010<\/strong> ensures that this shared region is not under dispute.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Contests in the East<\/strong>: On India\u2019s eastern and southern coastlines, ECS claims in the Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean span 300,000 square kilometers but have faced <strong>challenges from Myanmar and Sri Lanka.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/india-skirts-maritime-border-dispute-with-pakistan-by-fresh-continental-shelf-claim\/article69493962.ece\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Source: TH<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">India has strategically expanded its claim in the Central Arabian Sea, adding nearly 10,000 square kilometers to its Extended Continental Shelf (ECS).<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3><strong>About the Continental Shelf<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It is a critical concept in maritime law, defined under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It refers to the submerged extension of a country&#8217;s landmass, stretching from the coastline to the deep ocean floor.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/28-04-2025\/india-claim-over-continental-shelf-in-arabian-sea\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42211","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42211","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42211"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42211\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42242,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42211\/revisions\/42242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}