India to claim extended rights to continental shelf in May

New Delhi, Mar 15 (PTI) India is expected to submit its
claim on extending its rights on the continental shelf in May,
a move which will allow it to exploit natural resources upto
350 nautical miles into the deep sea.

Indian Government is in the process of finalising claims
on the continental shelf and the issue is expected to come
before the Union Cabinet this month, officials in the Ministry
of Earth Sciences (MoES) said.

Goa-based National Centre for Antarctica and Ocean
Research (NCAOR), an institution under MoES, has put together
a massive scientific report delineating the country's claims
to the continental shelf, which extends upto 350 nautical
miles into the sea, they said.

A number of scientists from eight organisations led by
NCAOR took about nine years to prepare the report which is now
being examined by legal advisors.

The government can file in final claims, which close the
option of any revision or submit partial claims leaving space
for additions or deletions at a later stage.

India, party to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the
Seas, has to submit its claims by May 12, 2009 to extend its
sovereignty beyond 200 nautical miles and within 350 nautical
miles from the baseline.

"A decision on whether to submit partial or final claims
will be taken by the Union Cabinet," officials said.

Sovereign rights over the continental shelf is
significant as most commercial exploitation from the sea such
as metallic ore, non-metallic ore and hydrocarbon exploitation
takes place in the region.

Nearly 10 terrabytes of data has been collected by
scientists over the past nine years after a detailed study of
the seas from the country's coastline.

India shares maritime boundaries with Indonesia,
Thailand, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, the Maldives and Sri
Lanka.

Myanmar and Indonesia have filed continental shelf claims
before the UN Commission.

India has also to decide on the baseline from where the
jurisdiction is to be marked.

Bangladesh has already notified its baseline, which is
disputed by both India and Myanmar.

Once the claims are submitted to the UN body, it may take
another three to four months before India is called to defend
its claims before a sub-group.