Parliamentary panel recommends 'polar ambassador' to strengthen India's Arctic strategy

New Delhi: A parliamentary panel has recommended to the Centre to consider appointing a "polar ambassador", saying that creating such a position will help India project the importance given to these regions in its foreign policy architecture, and also help pursue "polar diplomacy" in a more effective manner.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, led by Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, said this in a report -- "India's Role and Presence in the Arctic and Antarctic Regions" -- tabled in Parliament on Thursday.

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Most of the resources in the Arctic are within sovereign territories and declaring it as being Global Commons is resisted by the Arctic countries, the panel said in its report.

The Ministry of External Affairs has told the committee that "India is committed to a rules-based approach and envisions itself as a science-driven and environmentally responsible actor in both Arctic and Antarctic."

"Our engagements, both at political and scientific levels, are guided by this approach as well as by sustainability-focused cooperation in the areas including energy security and sea-route governance. There are also established international regimes related to deep sea mining and fishing. India will engage constructively as per its obligations under such regimes," the MEA told the committee.

The committee said it has noted that the Arctic region is considered to be above 66 degrees north latitude, and the Antarctic region usually refers to areas 60 degrees south latitude. The two regions represent nearly 90 per cent of the ice sheet of the planet and store 70 per cent of fresh water source. While the Arctic is a sea surrounded by landmass, Antarctica is a landmass surrounded by sea.

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Most of the Arctic region encompasses territories which are sovereign to the Arctic nations and is also inhabited by about four million people, out of which roughly 10 per cent of the inhabitants are indigenous, the panel said.

The committee has been informed that Antarctica is the only continent that is beyond the purview of the UN and is governed by the Antarctic Treaty System. Antarctica, having an area nearly five times that of India and holding ice sheet as thick as 4.5 km at places, can lead to a potential sea level rise of 60 metres, if it melted entirely, it said.

"Being a country of more than 11,000 km long coastline and multiple islands, any sea level rise will have significant economic and strategic impact on India. Melting of sea ice surrounding Antarctica and Arctic will also have significant impact on Indian Monsoon climate system," the panel said.

Strategically, a continuous Indian presence in Antarctica "strengthens our role" in international decision-making, enhances its credibility in polar governance, and ensures preparedness for future global discussions within the framework of the Antarctic Treaty. Indian Antarctic operations have also enabled technological advancement, logistics capability, and human resource development in extreme environments, the committee said.

The panel has said that considering that many broader strategic and economic capabilities are still evolving, it is of the view that India needs to evolve a "long-term policy" which will take into consideration various emerging challenges and enable India to play a "prominent role in the polar regions".

Taking note of the fact that all Arctic Council Member States and most Non-Arctic Observer States, including Japan, China, Singapore and South Korea, have "Polar/Arctic Ambassador along with a dedicated Polar/Arctic Affairs Desk or Department", it is imperative that India also has such an ambassador at a level equivalent to other countries exclusively to deal with polar regions, it said.

"Creating such a position will not only help India project the importance given to these regions in its foreign policy architecture but will also help put across its policy stance in relation to polar areas/pursue polar diplomacy in a more effective manner. The Committee, therefore, recommend the government to consider appointing a polar ambassador for polar engagement and facilitating collaboration," the panel added.

The panel has further observed that there are two Indian research stations -- 'Maitri' and 'Bharati' -- in Antarctica. While 'Maitri' was built on a stable ice-free land at Schirmacher Oasis and is operational since 1989, another very modern research station, 'Bharati' was established at Princess Elisabeth Land situated at about 2,500 km east of the 'Maitri' station in 2012.

The committee recommended expeditious construction of a "new Maitri station" that will not only strengthen India's long-term scientific presence, but will also strategically place it among the select group of countries in polar affairs, the report said.