The Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is a maritime zone prescribed by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). It represents a sea zone over which a sovereign state exercises special rights regarding the exploration and use of marine resources.
Jurisdictional Demarcation under UNCLOS
- Territorial Sea: Extends up to 12 nautical miles (nm) from the baseline. The coastal state exercises full sovereignty over the airspace, water column, seabed, and subsoil.
- Contiguous Zone: Extends from 12 nm to 24 nm from the baseline. The state can exercise limited control to prevent and punish infringements of customs, fiscal, immigration, or sanitary laws.
- Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ): Extends from the outer limit of the territorial sea up to a maximum of 200 nautical miles ($370.4 \text{ km}) from the coastal baseline. </li> <li> <b>Continental Shelf:</b> Comprises the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas that extend beyond the territorial sea throughout the natural prolongation of its land territory to the outer edge of the continental margin, up to a maximum of 350 nm. </li> </ul> <h5>Sovereign Rights vs. Sovereignty</h5> <p> Within the EEZ, a coastal nation does not possess absolute sovereignty but enjoys specific sovereign rights: </p> <ul> <li> Exploration, exploitation, conservation, and management of natural resources (both living and non-living) in the water column, seabed, and subsoil. </li> <li> Production of energy from water, currents, and winds. </li> <li> Construction and utilization of artificial islands, installations, and structures. </li> <li> Marine scientific research and the protection and preservation of the marine environment. </li> <li> Other states retain the freedom of navigation and overflight, as well as the freedom to lay submarine cables and pipelines, subject to the regulations of the coastal state. </li> </ul> <h4>Geographical Profile of India’s EEZ</h4> <p> India possesses a vast maritime domain due to its extensive peninsular coastline and strategically located island archipelagos. The total area of India’s EEZ is officially estimated at approximately 2.02 million square kilometers. </p> <h5>Spatial Distribution of India’s Maritime Zones</h5> <ul> <li> <b>The Western Coast (Arabian Sea):</b> Accounts for approximately43\%of India’s total EEZ, characterized by a wide continental shelf rich in hydrocarbon reserves. </li> <li> <b>The Eastern Coast (Bay of Bengal):</b> Accounts for approximately27\%of the EEZ, characterized by major river deltas and deep-sea fan systems. </li> <li> <b>The Andaman and Nicobar Islands:</b> Accounts for nearly30\%of India’s total EEZ. Despite having a small land mass, this island chain drastically expands India’s maritime jurisdiction into the Andaman Sea and close to the Malacca Strait. </li> </ul> <table> <thead> <tr> <td><strong>Maritime Region</strong></td> <td><strong>Approximate Share of EEZ</strong></td> <td><strong>Key Geographical Characteristics</strong></td> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td><b>Western Coast (Arabian Sea)</b></td> <td>860,000 sq km (43\%)</td> <td>Wide continental shelf, high pelagic fisheries, major petroleum basins.</td> </tr> <tr> <td><b>Eastern Coast (Bay of Bengal)</b></td> <td>540,000 sq km (27\%)</td> <td>Major deltaic deposits, gas reserves, prone to tropical cyclones.</td> </tr> <tr> <td><b>Andaman & Nicobar Islands</b></td> <td>620,000 sq km (30\%)</td> <td>Deep oceanic waters, critical choke-point proximity, rich coral ecosystems.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <h4>Resource Potential of India’s EEZ</h4> <p> The 2 million square kilometers of India’s EEZ contain immense living and non-living resources vital to national economic security and the “Blue Economy” framework. </p> <h5>Hydrocarbon and Energy Resources</h5> <ul> <li> <b>Offshore Petroleum and Natural Gas:</b> Major producing basins like the Mumbai High, Vasai East, and Krishna-Godavari (KG) Basin lie entirely within the EEZ. </li> <li> <b>Gas Hydrates:</b> Vast potential reserves of methane gas hydrates locked in the marine sediments along the continental slopes of the Krishna-Godavari, Mahanadi, and Andaman basins. </li> <li> <b>Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC):</b> Significant potential in the deep tropical waters surrounding the Lakshadweep and Andaman islands due to the high temperature gradient between surface and deep sea water. </li> </ul> <h5>Mineral Resources and Deep Sea Mining</h5> <ul> <li> <b>Polymetallic Nodules (PMN):</b> India was accorded “Pioneer Investor” status by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in 1987. It holds an allocation of 75,000 square kilometers in the Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB) for the exploration of nodules rich in manganese, nickel, cobalt, and copper. </li> <li> <b>Polymetallic Sulphides (PMS):</b> India signed a contract with the ISA for the exploration of polymetallic sulphides along the Central Indian Ridge and Southwest Indian Ridge in the Indian Ocean. </li> </ul> <h5>Living Resources and Fisheries</h5> <ul> <li> <b>Marine Fisheries Potential:</b> The annual harvestable fishery potential of India’s EEZ is estimated at nearly 4.4 million metric tonnes. </li> <li> <b>Demersal and Pelagic Resources:</b> The zone holds major commercial stocks of tuna, mackerel, sardines, and cephalopods, supporting the livelihoods of over 4 million coastal fishermen. </li> </ul> <h4>Geopolitical and Strategic Dimensions</h4> <p> India’s EEZ is not merely an economic asset but a critical arena for geopolitical posturing and national defense under the “Security and Growth for All in the Region” (SAGAR) vision. </p> <h5>Encroachment and Maritime Boundary Disputes</h5> <ul> <li> <b>Sir Creek Dispute:</b> The unresolved boundary dispute between India and Pakistan in the Rann of Kutch impacts the determination of the maritime baseline, directly influencing the demarcation of the resource-rich EEZ in the northern Arabian Sea. </li> <li> <b>New Moore Island / South Talpatti:</b> The maritime boundary between India and Bangladesh in the Bay of Bengal was settled by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in 2014. While New Moore Island fell to India’s side, the award established a gray area and delimited the EEZ boundaries cleanly, ending decades of ambiguity. </li> </ul> <h5>Security Vulnerabilities within the EEZ</h5> <ul> <li> <b>Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs):</b> Disagreements exist between India’s domestic laws and global powers (like the United States) regarding military maneuvers in the EEZ. India’s Maritime Zones Act (1976) requires prior notification for foreign warships transiting or exercising inside its EEZ, a stance challenged by US Navy FONOPs. </li> <li> <b>Chinese Research Vessels:</b> Frequent deployment of Chinese dual-use oceanographic research and tracking vessels (e.g., Yuan Wang class) near India’s EEZ boundaries under the guise of scientific research, raising espionage concerns regarding underwater topography and submarine pathways. </li> </ul> <h4>Legislative and Enforcement Framework</h4> <p> India has instituted strong domestic legislation and deployed specialized security forces to monitor and protect its economic rights within the EEZ. </p> <h5>Key National Legislations</h5> <ul> <li> <b>The Territorial Waters, Continental Shelf, EEZ and other Maritime Zones Act, 1976:</b> This Act defines India’s maritime zones, coordinates sovereign rights, and outlines the legal regime applicable to these waters. </li> <li> <b>The Coast Guard Act, 1978:</b> Establishes the Indian Coast Guard as a full-fledged armed force of the Union tasked with the protection of India’s maritime zones and national interests therein. </li> <li> <b>The Maritime Zones of India (Regulation of Fishing by Foreign Vessels) Act, 1981:</b> Regulates and prohibits unauthorized commercial fishing by foreign vessels within the Indian EEZ. </li> </ul> <h5>Enforcement Mechanism</h5> <ul> <li> <b>The Indian Coast Guard (ICG):</b> Functions as the nodal agency for EEZ surveillance. Its responsibilities include anti-poaching operations, checking illegal immigration, preventing maritime pollution, and protecting offshore energy platforms. </li> <li> <b>Deep Ocean Mission (DOM):</b> Launched by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, this multi-disciplinary program builds technological capability for deep-sea mining, manned submersibles (Matsya 6000), and ocean climatic studies to sustainably utilize the EEZ. </li> </ul> <h4>Fact File and Trivia for Prelims</h4> <ul> <li> <b>Nautical Mile Conversion:</b> 1 Nautical Mile (1\text{ nm}) is equivalent to %%IASDOLLARAMOUNT1%%.852 kilometers.
- Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB): The specific site allocated to India by the ISA for exploring polymetallic nodules, situated in international waters south of the Indian peninsula.
- Matsya 6000: The indigenous manned submersible developed under India’s Deep Ocean Mission, engineered to carry three personnel to a depth of 6,000 meters for deep-sea resource exploration.
- Baseline: The low-water line along the coast as officially recognized by the coastal state; all maritime zones are measured outward from this line.
- The 1974 & 1976 Indo-Sri Lanka Agreements: Settled the maritime boundary in the Palk Strait, explicitly ceding the island of Kachchatheevu to Sri Lanka and defining the limits of their respective EEZs.