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India in Antarctica

One of the really good things that Indira Gandhi did was authorize exploratory expeditions to Antarctica in 1981. Forget about the scientific hoopla surrounding these expeditions. Those are just side benefits. To me, Antarctica is the last unexplored continent with abundant mineral resources.

Mrs. Gandhi did right by laying the foundation for India's claim for a stake in a future scramble for the vast uninhabited continent's riches. This is an investment in the future and it is heartening to see that India is mounting another expedition to the Antarctica. The 230 crores to be spent for this is a good investment for India's future generations.

3 comments:

Vinod_Sharma said...

Absolutely. This is one of the few instances of India grabbing an opportunity proactively before the door was shut. It will yield huge returns in future.

Krishna Aradhi said...

This idea of exploring Antarctica sounds scary to me. If someone (or some nation) does find mineral resources in a huge enough quantity to exploit them, there'll be a host of other nations staking claim for the same - leading ultimately to conflict. Besides, going by human history, it just seems inevitable that we end up screwing any land we set our foot on (environmentally, to be more precise). We are already close to punching a big hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica.

But yes, unless all the major countries come together and sign a treaty (and stand by it) saying that they'll leave Antarctica alone, India should maintain its presence on that continent. We cannot ignore Antarctica.

manju said...

Yes, it is a good investment for India's future generations.

I wonder how many years it will be before Antartica's mineral resources can be mined in a cost-effective way.

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