{"id":120087,"date":"2026-08-20T11:27:56","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T05:57:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=120087"},"modified":"2026-08-20T11:32:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T06:02:37","slug":"indias-arctic-narrative-why-climate-security-and-geopolitics-demand-a-clear-strategy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/indias-arctic-narrative-why-climate-security-and-geopolitics-demand-a-clear-strategy\/","title":{"rendered":"India&#8217;s Arctic Narrative: Why Climate Security and Geopolitics Demand a Clear Strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>India&#8217;s Arctic Narrative Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A recent Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs report, &#8220;<\/span><b>India&#8217;s Role and Presence in the Arctic and Antarctic Regions<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">,&#8221; has highlighted a <\/span><b>widening gap<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> between India&#8217;s Arctic ambitions and its actual capabilities \u2014 coming close on the heels of <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/indias-arctic-policy\/\" target=\"_blank\">India&#8217;s Arctic Policy, 2022<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>India&#8217;s Arctic Credentials<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India&#8217;s Arctic engagement dates back over a century: as part of the British Dominion, it was among the <\/span><b>original 14 signatories<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the <\/span><b><i>1920 Svalbard Treaty<\/i><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which entitles Indians to visit the Svalbard archipelago without a visa and undertake commercial activities there.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Today, India remains one of only two developing countries with a permanent scientific presence in the Arctic, through its <\/span><b>Himadri research station <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in Ny-\u00c5lesund, Svalbard.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, engagement has largely stayed confined to scientific research, even as the Arctic evolves into a convergence point for climate change and geopolitics.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Why India Needs an Arctic Narrative: Climate Security<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Monsoon linkage:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Agriculture contributes about 18% of India&#8217;s GDP and supports over half its population, with nearly 70% of annual rainfall coming from the southwest monsoon.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Emerging research points to an Arctic-Indian monsoon teleconnection, where Arctic warming and shrinking sea ice alter atmospheric circulation patterns affecting South Asian rainfall.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Sea-level rise:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The Arctic is a major driver of global sea-level rise, threatening low-lying nations like the Maldives and large parts of Bangladesh and India&#8217;s coastline.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Estimates suggest over 250 million people in vulnerable South Asian coastal regions could be affected by mid-century \u2014 a challenge with direct implications for migration, humanitarian response, and national security.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Geopolitical Stakes<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Two of India&#8217;s closest strategic partners, the US and Russia, are Arctic nations, while China \u2014 despite being a non-Arctic state \u2014 has invested heavily in Arctic infrastructure, research, and shipping.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Arctic is emerging as a <\/span><b>zone of great-power competition<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> over maritime access, energy security, and critical mineral supply chains.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India enjoys goodwill with all <\/span><b>eight Arctic states<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, reinforced by the recent <\/span><b>India-Nordic Summit<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (covering Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland) and improving ties with Canada \u2014 a diplomatic advantage few other countries possess.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Institutional and Capability Gaps<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>No Dedicated Polar Ambassador<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Arctic affairs responsibility is <\/span><b>fragmented across four different divisions<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> within the Ministry of External Affairs, hampering coherent policy-making.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All Arctic states, and even non-Arctic states like Singapore, have dedicated Arctic envoys \u2014 India does not, despite having a formal Arctic Policy.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Absence of a Polar Research Vessel (PRV)<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Without an ice-class research vessel, India&#8217;s Arctic research remains confined largely to Svalbard, dependent on foreign collaboration or chartered vessels \u2014 limiting research continuity and scheduling flexibility.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Though a PRV was sanctioned by the Union Cabinet in 2014, it remains undelivered, with current plans pushing completion to the end of this decade.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In contrast, China acquired a second-hand Ukrainian icebreaker (Xuelong\/&#8221;Snow Dragon&#8221;) as an interim measure and now operates multiple polar vessels, including a nuclear icebreaker under construction \u2014 a <\/span><b>model India could emulate<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Inadequate Funding<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India spent just Rs 17.53 crore on Arctic activities in 2024-25 \u2014 less than one-tenth of its Antarctic spending, and less than the cost of building a single kilometre of flyover.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is seen as disproportionately low for a region influencing sea-level rise along India&#8217;s 11,098-km coastline and holding major climate and geopolitical significance.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b style=\"font-size: inherit;\">Conclusion<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India possesses historic legitimacy, scientific presence, and diplomatic goodwill in the Arctic, but its institutional structures and budgetary commitments do not match its strategic interests.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With the 2022 Arctic Policy providing the framework and the Parliamentary Committee identifying the gaps, the urgent task now is to convert policy intent into concrete capability \u2014 through a Polar Ambassador, a dedicated research vessel, and adequate funding \u2014 to secure India&#8217;s long-term climate and geopolitical interests in the region.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source:<\/b><strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-global\/india-arctic-policy-strategy-polar-research-vessel-expert-explains-10825204\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">IE<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com\/2026\/08\/why-india-needs-a-comprehensive-polar-strategy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">TD<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>India&#8217;s Arctic Narrative must connect climate security, monsoon risks and geopolitics with stronger institutions, a Polar Ambassador, research vessels and adequate funding.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":120098,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[9648,60,22,59],"class_list":["post-120087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","tag-indias-arctic-narrative","tag-mains-articles","tag-upsc-current-affairs","tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs-tag","no-featured-image-padding"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120087"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120087\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":120104,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120087\/revisions\/120104"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/120098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}