Discuss the strategic and economic significance of the Deep Ocean Mission for India's Blue Economy. Examine the technological milestones achieved so far.

Q. Discuss the strategic and economic significance of the Deep Ocean Mission for India's Blue Economy. Examine the technological milestones achieved so far. (15 marks, 250-350 words)

Launched on 7 September 2021 as a Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Earth Sciences with an outlay of Rs 4,077 crore for 2021-26, the Deep Ocean Mission (DOM) is India's mission-mode push to convert an unexplored ocean floor into a Blue Economy asset through six verticals [3][2]. Its significance is simultaneously strategic, economic and technological.

Strategic significance - Seabed sovereignty: India's polymetallic nodule site in the Central Indian Ocean Basin is held under an International Seabed Authority (ISA) contract under UNCLOS; sustained exploration is the condition for retaining these rights [2]. - Critical-mineral security: cobalt, nickel and manganese from nodules cut import dependence in battery and defence supply chains [1]. - Ocean diplomacy: capacity-building with France — Indian pilots trained on the submersible NAUTILE (2025) — deepens scientific partnerships in the Indo-Pacific [1].

Economic significance - Directly serves the Blue Economy pillar of Viksit Bharat, monetising non-living resources, deep-sea bioprospecting and marine biotechnology [1]. - Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC)-based offshore desalination promises clean energy and freshwater for island and coastal populations [4]. - Ocean Climate Change Advisory Services protect coastal livelihoods, ports and fisheries from extreme-sea-level risk [1].

Technological milestones - MATSYA-6000, an indigenous human-occupied vehicle for three aquanauts to 6,000 m, built jointly by NIOT and ISRO's VSSC, completed crewed and uncrewed wet harbour trials in January-February 2025 [1][5]. - The OMe 6000 autonomous underwater vehicle surveyed at 5,271 m depth in the CIOB (2022), and over 100 kg of cobalt-rich nodules were collected from 1,173 m in the Andaman Sea [2][1]. - Scientific yield: 31 seamounts surveyed, 201 deep-sea species documented, and hydrothermal vent fields discovered on Indian Ridges [1].

DOM thus links resource security, climate resilience and indigenous engineering into one platform. Going forward, timely completion of the Samudrayaan manned dive, expected by end-2026, alongside ISA-compliant environmental safeguards, will determine whether India's Blue Economy grows sustainably [4]. Handled well, the deep ocean becomes India's next frontier of Atmanirbharta — advancing SDG-14 rather than trading it away.

(~330 words)

Sources: 1. Parliament Question: Impact and Achievements of the Deep Ocean Mission, MoES (5 Aug 2026) — six verticals, wet trials, NAUTILE training, 100 kg nodules, seamount/species data, climate advisory 2. Deep Ocean Mission budget and exploration details, PIB (Dr Jitendra Singh) — Rs 4,077 crore outlay, CIOB/ISA nodule site, OMe 6000 at 5,271 m 3. Cabinet approves Deep Ocean Mission, PIB (2021) — launch as Central Sector Scheme, Blue Economy mandate 4. Deep Ocean Mission: India's Gateway to the Ocean Floor, PIB Factsheet (17 Aug 2025) — OTEC desalination, Samudrayaan dive by end-2026 5. Samudrayaan Mission, PIB — MATSYA-6000 specifications, NIOT-VSSC collaboration