This month, Prof. Sajid Mehmood Shahzad, retired naval officer and Vice Chancellor of Minhaj University, Lahore, wrote in our newspaper about India’s “blue economy” policy and Pakistan’s concerns over maritime security
History of India reveals that economic potential of Indian Ocean or what is today called blue (ocean) economy was never appreciated much less realized by the ruling class. This is especially true for Mughal era. Deeply inward looking, Mughals raised large armies at the cost of neglect of Indian shores. It provided external powers to gain foothold in India. The mighty British Empire which replaced Mughals not only recognized ocean potential but also put the same to good use and accrued advantage. The import and export business by British East India Company eventually led to colonizing of India. British Raj then shifted its focus to trading in Indian spices, cotton and tea.
At the end of Second World War, the British Empire emaciated. This resulted in several of its colonies securing independence. Britain left subcontinent in 1947 but not before unfairly dividing India much to the angst of Pakistan. The assets and resources overwhelmingly favored India while Pakistan was denied appropriate share in economic and industrial potential. The birth of Pakistan hence came with lot of inherent problems. The settlement of refugees, resource as well as qualified manpower constraints placed Pakistan economy in gray zone.
The United Nations recently defined the blue economy as, “marine –based economic development that leads to improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities”. Broadly speaking, the term blue economy which refers to the usage of ocean and marine resources for economic activity was prioritized by India early on. Along with development in various national sectors, India commenced exploiting ocean resources or blue economy at the onset of independence. Indian government and policy makers well understood the vast potential of the ocean in driving national economy. The 7500 Km long coastline and an exclusive economic zone of over 2 million square kilometers was a gift nature had bestowed on the country. This opportunity was strategically exploited not only in economic but military terms as well.
It is estimated that blue economy today contributes roughly 4% to the GDP of India. New Delhi plans to substantially enhance this contribution in coming years. To boost the sector, the government has recently released a draft document articulating policy guidelines on blue economy. The policy aims to increase contribution of the sector to USD 12 billion per annum by 2025. The important sectors that are embraced under the policy include fisheries, aquaculture, coastal tourism, marine biotechnology, seabed mining and energy. It further seeks to utilize ocean resources with minimal and repairable impact on the oceanic environment. National Institute of oceanography in India is playing a crucial role in the realization of these policy objectives.
Insofar technology is concerned, the latest advancements for ocean study and exploration remains high on the agenda of Indian scientific community. Automation technologies, such as robotics, artificial intelligence and big data analytics are being encouraged for marine research. India also envisages building ocean clusters and centers of excellence for achieving greater innovation in the sphere of blue economy. Understandably, Government of India has now stepped up efforts under Ministry for Earth Sciences (MoES) to drive the development of blue economy at national level. The MoES will also liaise with ministries besides other interdisciplinary groups and activities to advance R&D. Furthermore, since blue economy has enormous employment creation potential, Indian government seeks to develop and empower young people along the Indian coast for various industries associated with blue economy. This comes under the ambit of Skill India Initiative. Likewise, under Sagarmala (garland or necklace in Hindi) project, India also contemplates enhancing efficiency and capacity building of Indian sea ports over and above lifting volume of shipping activity. The project is not different from what people commonly frame for China, “string of pearls” in the Indian Ocean. Yet Sagarmala is more domestically focused on India’s shipping, shipbuilding, and port development. This is alongside harnessing hinterland and coastal connections to streamline and strengthen India’s ability to connect to larger global political economy.
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Pakistan’dan Türk Denizaltı Filosu Komutanlığı’na ziyaret
Regardless, sustainability is considered an essential factor in seabed exploration which should be integrated in any blue economy plan. Recent Indian attempts to irresponsibly expand exploitation of ocean resources are likely to have dangerous consequences for the marine environment. It would not be without risks to environment and marine ecology. The need for conservation and sustainability while exploring blue economy opportunities cannot be over emphasized. This is particularly true for deep sea mining. Although opponents of deep sea mining suffered a setback following their recent failure to have an international moratorium imposed on the practice by ISA, the commercial seabed area rules are still to be finalized even after a decade. Seabed mining has the potential to damage habitats and harm species that are little known or understood.
India’s blue economy goals raise some concerns of security in the region especially with respect to Pakistan. India’s increasing naval power has raised concerns in Pakistan since it aims to increase fleet size for conduct of blue water operations, far beyond Indian shores. Pakistan views India’s Sagarmala Project with concern and deems it as an effort to expand ‘‘naval strategic depth’ to encircle near maritime states including Pakistan.
Another concern for Pakistan is Indian claim and military infrastructure build up in the disputed Sir Creek, a low-lying marsh bordering area in the region. Indian government seems to be creating unnecessary hype to find a pretext for misadventure given the strategic environment. India has frequently apprehended Pakistani fishermen engaged in fishing activities near Indus delta region on the pretext of crossing over to Indian waters. The fishermen community in the area is worried. On another note, the construction plans for the development of Indian territories in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands proximate to major sea-lanes are also dangerous development for international shipping engaged in maritime trade.
The increasing maritime military ambitions of India in the region have compelled Pakistan to build a suitable fleet in collaboration with other friendly countries. The aggressive Indian military behavior along with unbridled blue economy inroads in the Indian Ocean cast destabilizing impact in the region.
Pakistan must move to advance maritime development projects and expand information sharing as well as maritime domain awareness. Moreover, avenues for cooperation and new direct and effective communication hotlines lines between the coast guards on both sides may be established. Both countries may also consider combatting marine pollution to restore health of the Ocean. This could be a beginning towards a cooperative framework. Profound efforts are also needed to by Pakistan to harness and inject vitality in blue economy.
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