All coastal countries enjoy an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), extending up to 200 nautical miles from their shores
India has quietly expanded its claim in the Central Arabian Sea by nearly 10,000 square kilometres as part of its effort to secure rights over its extended continental shelf. In doing so, the country has also tactically modified a portion of its earlier submission to the United Nations in a bid to steer clear of a long-standing maritime dispute with Pakistan.
The revised claims were submitted on April 3 to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), the international body responsible for adjudicating extended continental shelf submissions made by coastal states under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
All coastal countries enjoy an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), extending up to 200 nautical miles from their shores. Within this zone, they have exclusive rights to exploit natural resources, including fishing, seabed mining and energy exploration. However, under UNCLOS, nations can also seek to go beyond this limit by proving—through detailed scientific evidence—that their continental shelf stretches further into the seabed. This area, if accepted by the CLCS, becomes part of their extended continental shelf, granting them exclusive rights to resources on and beneath the ocean floor.
India currently has territorial rights extending 12 nautical miles from its coast and an EEZ of 200 nautical miles. The country’s effort to extend this through submissions to the CLCS could add over 1.2 million square kilometres of seabed rights, nearly matching India’s land area of 3.274 million square kilometres. This would be in addition to its existing 2 million square kilometres of EEZ.
“With the anticipated addition of approximately 1.2 million square km of extended continental shelf from the two submissions to the ~2 million sq. km of EEZ, India’s seabed and sub-seabed area would become almost equal its land area of 3.274 million sq. km,” said the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), an institute under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) that has led India’s technical efforts in defining its maritime limits.
India’s initial submission to the CLCS in 2009 had staked claims across three vast maritime zones: the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean, and the Arabian Sea. But the claims ran into geopolitical complications—particularly in the Arabian Sea, where Pakistan raised objections.
In 2021, Pakistan lodged formal protests against India’s western offshore claim, arguing that it overlapped by nearly 100 nautical miles with territory that lies within the still-contested maritime boundary in the Sir Creek area. This stretch of water, located in the marshes of the Rann of Kutch, marks the disputed maritime frontier between India’s Gujarat and Pakistan’s Sindh province.
India countered these claims robustly, but in March 2023, the CLCS rejected the entire Arabian Sea portion of India’s claim. However, international norms allow for countries to revise and resubmit their claims in modified forms.
Recognising the significance of the Central Arabian Sea, India restructured its original western claim into two “partial” submissions. By removing the part that intersects with the disputed Sir Creek area, India hopes to retain and solidify its claim over the rest of the territory, which is considered highly valuable for resource exploration.
“Countries can submit any number of partial claims,” said M Ravichandran, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences. “Overall we have increased our claim by an additional 10,000 square km based on additional data gathered. The remaining part can be discussed bilaterally. This strategy is part of our approach to ensure that at least (the region) without dispute, and which is very valuable, is awarded to us.”
On the technical front, institutions under the MoES, including the NCPOR, have conducted extensive research involving bathymetric mapping, seismic studies and sediment sampling to scientifically support India’s claims.
There are also minor overlaps with Oman in parts of India’s Arabian Sea shelf claims. However, the two nations have maintained an understanding since 2010 that while the boundary is yet to be officially delimited, it remains uncontested. This diplomatic alignment has helped both sides avoid complications during the CLCS review process.
On India’s eastern and southern maritime front, the country has also submitted claims for approximately 300,000 square kilometres of the seabed in the Bay of Bengal and parts of the Indian Ocean. These, however, have faced objections from neighbouring countries, including Myanmar and Sri Lanka. The CLCS is expected to begin a new round of consultations later this year to evaluate these claims.
The process of reviewing continental shelf claims is intricate and often prolonged, especially in cases where overlapping submissions or geopolitical sensitivities exist. Each claim requires detailed scientific validation, including geological and geophysical evidence, to establish a natural prolongation of a country’s landmass into the seabed.
The stakes are high. A successful claim gives a country the right to mine for hydrocarbons, rare minerals, and polymetallic nodules, all of which are becoming increasingly important in global resource strategies. As global demand for strategic minerals and deep-sea oil grows, securing rights over these underwater territories can yield significant long-term economic and strategic benefits.
India’s recalibrated approach signals a pragmatic recognition of these geopolitical realities. By isolating disputed zones and prioritising uncontested regions, New Delhi appears to be positioning itself for steady gains without allowing long-pending border disagreements to derail progress.
The next step for India will be to defend its revised submissions before the CLCS. Given the scientific backing and reduced risk of conflict, officials are hopeful that the Central Arabian Sea claim—at least in its current, restructured form—will receive a favourable verdict.
For now, India continues to pursue a cautious but assertive maritime policy, expanding its underwater footprint while avoiding potential flashpoints. The reworked strategy marks a significant move in securing its oceanic boundaries—one that may well set the tone for future maritime diplomacy in the region.
