On August 20, 2026, the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) released India's first comprehensive National Report on Deep-Sea and Distant-Water Fishery Resources. Compiled by the Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE) to mark its Silver Jubilee in Kochi, the report maps the marine biodiversity across India's 2.37 million sq km Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). By highlighting underexploited deep-sea fish stocks and identifying crucial ecological zones like the mesopelagic layer, the report provides a scientific foundation for the Deep Ocean Mission and India's Blue Economy, aiming to shift fishing pressure away from depleted coastal waters.
On August 20, 2026, the Ministry of Earth Sciences officially launched the National Report on Deep-Sea and Distant-Water Fishery Resources of the Indian EEZ. The release event commemorated the Silver Jubilee of the Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE). The document offers an exhaustive mapping of marine life and exploitable fish stocks, aiming to guide sustainable commercial fishing while protecting fragile deep-sea ecosystems.
The report was unveiled in Kochi, Kerala, where CMLRE is headquartered. The research itself spans India's vast 2.37 million sq km Exclusive Economic Zone, covering the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, Lakshadweep waters, the Andaman Sea, and the Southern Ocean off Antarctica.
This report is a cornerstone for India's Blue Economy and is highly relevant to UPSC GS Paper 3 (Economy and Environment). Economically, it provides a roadmap to boost seafood exports by targeting underexploited deep-sea fish, thereby relieving immense pressure on traditional coastal fisheries. Environmentally, it warns against overexploiting the mesopelagic layer, as its organisms drive the biological carbon pump—a vital mechanism that sequesters carbon and regulates the global climate.
India's EEZ of 2.37 million sq km is approximately 72% the size of its landmass. Globally, India is one of the top fish-producing nations, but its deep-sea sector lags behind advanced maritime fleets. This report elevates India's standing in regional fisheries diplomacy and aligns its ocean governance with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life Below Water).
Core Concept: Maritime Zones under UNCLOS
Q1. Which institution released the National Report on Deep-Sea and Distant-Water Fishery Resources of the Indian EEZ in 2026? [Easy]
A) Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
B) Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE)
C) National Institute of Oceanography
D) Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services
Answer: B
Explanation: The report was compiled and released by the Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE) to mark its Silver Jubilee in August 2026.
Q2. Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) extends up to how many nautical miles from the baseline? [Easy]
A) 12 nautical miles
B) 24 nautical miles
C) 200 nautical miles
D) 350 nautical miles
Answer: C
Explanation: An EEZ extends up to 200 nautical miles, within which a coastal state has sovereign rights to explore and exploit natural resources.
Q3. Which dedicated research vessel has been primarily used by CMLRE to conduct systematic deep-sea surveys in the Indian EEZ over the past decades? [Moderate]
A) INS Tarangini
B) ORV Sagar Kanya
C) MATSYA-6000
D) FORV Sagar Sampada
Answer: D
Explanation: The Fishery and Oceanographic Research Vessel (FORV) Sagar Sampada has served as India's floating laboratory for the Marine Living Resources Programme.
Q4. The mesopelagic zone, highlighted in the report for holding dense communities of lanternfishes, is located at what depth in the ocean? [Moderate]
A) 0 to 50 metres
B) 50 to 200 metres
C) 200 to 1,000 metres
D) 1,000 to 4,000 metres
Answer: C
Explanation: The mesopelagic or "twilight" zone lies between 200 and 1,000 metres below the surface, just beyond the reach of useful sunlight.
Q5. Why does the CMLRE report caution against the large-scale commercial exploitation of mesopelagic organisms like lanternfish? [Moderate]
A) They are highly toxic for human consumption
B) Their vertical migration drives the ocean's biological carbon pump
C) They are the primary food source for coral reefs
D) Their extraction causes immediate localized ocean acidification
Answer: B
Explanation: The nightly vertical migration of these organisms transfers carbon from the surface to the deep ocean, making them crucial for climate regulation.
Q6. Consider the rights of a coastal state within its maritime zones. In which zone does a state possess sovereign rights specifically over natural resources, but NOT full sovereignty over the waters, thereby allowing other nations freedom of navigation? [Tricky]
A) Territorial Sea
B) Contiguous Zone
C) Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)
D) Continental Shelf
Answer: C
Explanation: In the EEZ, a state has sovereign rights over exploring and managing resources, but other states retain freedoms of navigation and overflight.
Q7. What is the estimated potential yield of conventional and non-conventional fishery resources within the Indian EEZ, according to the recent MoES assessments? [Tricky]
A) 2.37 million tonnes
B) 4.50 million tonnes
C) 7.16 million tonnes
D) 10.2 million tonnes
Answer: C
Explanation: The estimated potential yield for the Indian EEZ is 7.16 million tonnes, highlighting significant underexploited resources in deep waters.
Q8. Which of the following is NOT one of the primary reasons advocated by the National Report for shifting fishing efforts towards deep-sea and distant-water resources? [Tricky]
A) To relieve extreme fishing pressure on over-exploited coastal fish stocks
B) To completely ban traditional small-scale fishing in the territorial sea
C) To boost India's seafood exports and diversify the fisheries economy
D) To sustainably exploit resources identified under the Deep Ocean Mission
Answer: B
Explanation: The goal is to move industrial effort outward to protect near-shore stocks for small-scale traditional fishers, not to ban traditional fishing.
PYQ 1:
With reference to India's institutional framework for marine resources, the Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE) functions under which of the following ministries?
A) Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
B) Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
C) Ministry of Earth Sciences
D) Ministry of Science and Technology
Answer: C
Explanation: CMLRE is an attached office under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, headquartered in Kochi.
PYQ 2:
Consider the following statements regarding oceanographic zones and India's marine resources:
1. The mesopelagic zone, located between 200 and 1,000 metres deep, plays a critical role in sequestering carbon through the biological carbon pump.
2. India's Exclusive Economic Zone covers an area of 2.37 million square kilometres, which is larger than half of its total land area.
3. Within the Territorial Sea, a coastal state has sovereign rights only over seabed resources, while surface waters belong to the high seas.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
A) 1 and 2 only
B) 2 and 3 only
C) 1 only
D) 1, 2, and 3
Answer: A
Explanation: Statement 1 and 2 are correct. Statement 3 is incorrect because a coastal state exercises full sovereignty over the Territorial Sea (up to 12 nm), subject only to the right of innocent passage.
PYQ 3:
Assertion (A): Expanding commercial fishing into the deep-sea mesopelagic zone could potentially accelerate the impacts of climate change.
Reason (R): Organisms in the mesopelagic zone undertake nightly vertical migrations that transport significant amounts of atmospheric carbon from the ocean surface to the deep sea.
A) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
B) Both A and R are true but R is not a correct explanation of A
C) A is true but R is false
D) A is false but R is true
Answer: A
Explanation: The biological carbon pump driven by mesopelagic organisms is a crucial climate-regulating service; removing them at scale would weaken this mechanism, making R the correct explanation for A.
Question 1 (150 words): Discuss the ecological significance of the mesopelagic zone in the context of the recently released National Report on Deep-Sea Fishery Resources.
The recently released National Report on Deep-Sea Fishery Resources highlights the mesopelagic, or "twilight" zone (200-1,000 metres deep), as a region of profound ecological and climatological importance. Unlike the over-exploited coastal waters, this zone holds dense communities of lanternfishes and deep-sea shrimps that have remained largely undisturbed.
Environmentally, the true value of this zone lies in its role in regulating the global climate. The organisms residing here undertake massive nightly vertical migrations—rising to the surface to feed under the cover of darkness and descending back to the depths during the day. This daily movement actively drives the ocean's "biological carbon pump," transferring immense quantities of surface carbon into the deep ocean where it is safely sequestered.
Therefore, while these resources present a lucrative economic opportunity, the report wisely cautions that overfishing this layer could cripple a vital carbon-regulating mechanism, advocating for stringent ecological safeguards under India's Blue Economy framework.
Question 2 (250 words): "India's push towards deep-sea and distant-water fishing is an economic necessity but a governance challenge." Analyze this statement in light of India's Blue Economy framework and the Deep Ocean Mission.
India's marine sector stands at a critical juncture, heavily reliant on a saturated coastal fishery while possessing vast, untapped potential in its 2.37 million sq km Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The recent National Report on Deep-Sea and Distant-Water Fishery Resources, released by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, estimates a total yield potential of 7.16 million tonnes, presenting deep-sea fishing as a clear economic necessity. Economically, redirecting fishing efforts towards the continental slope and distant waters is vital to boost seafood exports, generate offshore employment, and relieve the severe ecological pressure currently crippling inshore fish stocks.
However, this transition introduces complex governance and geopolitical challenges. Firstly, the capital-intensive nature of deep-sea fishing—requiring advanced vessels like FORV Sagar Sampada, robust cold chains, and specialized crews—risks marginalizing traditional small-scale fishers if licensing regimes are heavily skewed toward corporate operators. Policymakers face the delicate task of designing equitable access frameworks that do not displace vulnerable coastal communities.
Secondly, environmental oversight must be impeccable. The report warns against reckless exploitation of the mesopelagic layer, whose organisms drive the climate-regulating biological carbon pump. Weak regulatory enforcement could lead to irreversible biodiversity loss and weaken climate resilience.
In conclusion, while the Deep Ocean Mission provides the scientific and technological backing to harness deep-sea resources, the success of India's Blue Economy hinges on robust inter-ministerial coordination and stringent, science-based licensing that balances industrial scale with ecological preservation and social equity.
For Prelims, examiners heavily favour the exact nautical mile limits of UNCLOS maritime zones (Territorial vs Contiguous vs EEZ) and the parent ministries of specialized institutes like CMLRE. For Mains (GS-III), questions will likely blend the economic potential of the Blue Economy with the ecological risks to the biological carbon pump. In Interview rounds, candidates should be prepared to discuss the socio-economic friction between introducing large corporate deep-sea trawlers and protecting the livelihoods of traditional coastal fishers. A high-probability question for upcoming exams is the ecological function of the "twilight zone" or mesopelagic layer in carbon sequestration.