Cabinet approves ‘Deep Ocean’ mission to explore marine resources: Cabinet approves ‘Deep Ocean’ mission to explore marine resources

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The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved the ‘Deep Ocean’ mission to develop deep-sea technology for sustainable use of marine resources.

IANS | Updated on: 16 Jun 2021, 10:08:56 PM

Deep Ocean mission

Cabinet approves Deep Ocean Mission to explore marine resources (Photo Credit: IANS)

New Delhi:

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved the ‘Deep Ocean’ mission to develop deep-sea technology for sustainable use of marine resources. The proposal for the ambitious multi-institutional mission was moved by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES). The estimated cost of the mission for a period of five years will be Rs 4,077 crore and will be implemented in a phased manner. The estimated cost of the first phase for three years (2021-2024) will be Rs 2,823.4 crore. The Deep Ocean Mission will be a mission mode project to support the government’s Blue Economy initiative. MoES will be the nodal ministry to implement this mission.

The mission comprises six major components, including deep sea mining and development of technologies for manned submarines. In addition, the development of ocean climate change advisory services, technological innovation for the exploration and conservation of deep-sea biodiversity, deep-sea survey and exploration, energy from the ocean and advanced marine stations for fresh water and marine biology.

A manned submarine will be developed to carry three people to a depth of 6,000 meters in the sea with scientific sensors and instruments. Very few countries have achieved this capability.

An integrated mining system will also be developed for mining of polymetallic nodules from 6,000 meters depth in the central Indian Ocean. Exploration studies of minerals will pave the way for commercial exploitation in the near future, whenever a commercial exploitation code is developed by the International Seabed Authority, a United Nations organization. This component will help in the Blue Economy priority area of ​​exploration and exploitation of deep-sea minerals and energy.

Under the mission, a suite of observations and models will be developed to understand and provide future estimates of important climate variables on seasonal to decadal time scales under this proof-of-concept component. This component will support the Blue Economy priority sector of coastal tourism.

Bio-prospecting of deep-sea flora and fauna, including micro-organisms, and studies on sustainable use of deep-sea bio-resources will be the main focus of the mission. This component will support the Blue Economy priority sector of marine fisheries and allied services. The primary objective of this component is to locate and identify potential sites of multi-metal hydrothermal sulfide mineralization along mid-oceanic ridges in the Indian Ocean. This component will also support the Blue Economy priority area of ​​deep-sea exploration of ocean resources.



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First Published : 16 Jun 2021, 10:08:56 PM

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