Explained: India’s Arctic Policy about climate change
The Union Ministry of Earth Sciences represented by Jitendra Singh has brought out its latest Arctic Policy titled, 'India and the Arctic: Building a partnership for sustainable development’ on March 17, 2022. India's Arctic Policy intends to improve the nation’s collaboration with the resource-rich and fast changing Arctic region. The policy also aims to protect the environment and battle climate change in the region, which is warming three times faster than the rest of the world. Multiple stakeholders, including academia, the research community, business, and industry, will be involved in the implementation of India's Arctic strategy. The policy lays down six pillars:
- Strengthening India's scientific research and cooperation
- Climate and environmental protection
- Economic and human development
- Transportation and connectivity
- Governance and international cooperation
- National capacity building in the Arctic region
Objectives of India’s Arctic Policy 2022
India's Arctic Policy shall be implemented through a governance and review mechanism involving the inter‐ministerial Empowered Arctic Policy Group. India's Arctic policy aims to promote the following agenda:
- Strengthening national capabilities and competencies in science and exploration, climate and environmental protection, maritime and economic cooperation with the Arctic region. Institutional and human resource capacities will be strengthened within Government and academic, research and business institutions.
- Inter-ministerial coordination in pursuit of India's interests in the Arctic.
- Enhancing understanding of the impact of climate change in the Arctic on India's climate, economic, and energy security.
- Contributing better analysis, prediction, and coordinated policymaking on the implications of ice melting in the Arctic on India's economic, military and strategic interests related to global shipping routes, energy security, and exploitation of mineral wealth.
- Studying linkages between polar regions and the Himalayas.
- Deepen cooperation between India and countries of the Arctic region under various Arctic forums, drawing expertise from scientific and traditional knowledge.
- Increase India’s participation in the Arctic Council and improve understanding of the complex governance structures in the Arctic, relevant international laws, and geopolitics of the region.
What is the Arctic region and why is it important for India?
The Arctic refers to the region above the Arctic Circle, which contains the Arctic Ocean and the North Pole at its centre. India's Arctic policy would be critical in preparing the country for a future in which humanity's biggest challenges, such as climate change, can be met with collective will and effort. Moreover, the importance of the Arctic for India can be divided into three categories: scientific research, climate change, and the environment; economic and human resources; and geopolitical and strategic concerns.
Since the Arctic is expected to be ice-free by 2050, the region is of enormous geopolitical significance, with various nations rushing to utilise the region's abundant natural resources. Aside from metals and minerals, the region is recognised for its vast oil reserves and is predicted to become a major marine transit corridor in the future.
A brief history of India’s association with the Arctic region
India's involvement in the Arctic began in Paris in 1920, when it signed the Svalbard Treaty involving Spitsbergen alongside Norway, the United States, Denmark, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Great Britain, and Ireland, as well as the British overseas Dominions and Sweden. Spitsbergen is the largest island in the Svalbard archipelago, located in the Arctic Ocean and part of Norway. It is Svalbard's sole permanently inhabited region. Since then, India has been monitoring all developments in the Arctic region.
In 2007, India launched an Arctic research programme with a focus on climate change in the region. The goal was to investigate teleconnections between Arctic temperature and the Indian monsoon. India also conducts research on the dynamics and mass budget of Arctic glaciers, as well as sea-level fluctuations and an analysis of the flora and fauna on the Arctic. Until 2022, India has successfully conducted thirteen expeditions to the Arctic.