Context:

MoES new paper on "Transforming India’s Blue Economy: Investment, Innovation and Sustainable Growth”

Key Highlights of White Paper on Blue Economy:

• Investment: To strategically leverage sustained investment in blue infrastructure, research and ocean innovation. 
• PPP Focus: It fosters public-private partnerships and targeted financial mechanisms. 
• Target: The paper outlines a roadmap to 2035, prioritizing projects and building investor confidence to establish the blue economy .
• Key models: The white paper identifies specific models demonstrating economic growth and environmental sustainability:

• Community-led seaweed cultivation in Odisha: 
• Kochi's smart port transformation: 
• Alang, Gujarat's shipbreaking transformation Adhering to Hong Kong International Convention standards, Alang now maximizes resource recovery.
• Andaman and Nicobar Islands' sustainable tourism: Initiatives like eco-friendly infrastructure and community-led eco-tours have generated significant revenue and jobs, while bans on single-use plastics and Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have preserved coral reefs and cut tourist-zone waste. 

Blue Economy: 

Definition: The World Bank defines the blue economy as the sustainable development of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of the ocean ecosystem. The concept was first given by Gunter Pauli in 2010 in his book ‘The blue economy, 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs’.

This concept is linked with SDG 14: Conserving oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development.

The Interim Budget 2024 introduces "Blue Economy 2.0," a comprehensive initiative aimed at promoting climate-resilient growth along India’s coasts emphasizing the restoration of coastal ecosystems such as mangroves, supports sustainable aquaculture and mariculture practices, and focuses on enhancing coastal resilience and environmental adaptation efforts.

Components of Blue Economy: 

Importance of Blue Economy for India: 

• Oceanic Resource Utilisation: Oceans cover 75% of Earth’s surface, contain 97% of Earth’s water, and represent 99% of the planet’s living area.
• Economic contribution: Ocean trade constitutes nearly 3-5% of Global GDP and ocean helps in 80% of International goods transportation. 
•  India’s blue economy accounts for ~4% of the GDP and is estimated to increase over the period of time.
• Fishermen community:  Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector in the country provides livelihood support to a total 28 million fishers 

• Strategic location of Indian Ocean and strategic ambitions: Strengthens India’s position in the Indo-Pacific with maritime security partnerships (MSPs)

• India's vast Coastline : India has a coastline of more than 7500 km spread across 9 states.
• EEZ: India also has an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of more than 2.2 million sq km.

• Viksit Bharat Vision 2047 

• Climate Change: It can absorb dissolved carbon dioxide, contributing to climate change mitigation and improving water quality.
• Port led development: India has 12 major ports, 200+ minor ports, 30 shipyards, and various maritime service hubs.
• Fulfill SDGs and  achieve its domestic targets for fulfilling its commitments under Paris Climate Agreement:

• SDG 14: Sustainable use of marine resources.
• SDG 2: Goals related to eradication of Hunger and poverty elimination.

• Food Security: Blue economy will ensure that fish stocks are managed effectively, which will help in efficient food supply and development of coastal areas.
• Environmental significance:
• Renewable energy: Oceans are major source energy in the form of tidal energy, wave energy, offshore wind energy. These are clean sources of energy. It will reduce resilience on fossil fuels.
• Biodiversity conservation: Sustainable practices under Blue economy, helps conserve marine organism, protects coastal ecology, wetlands, etc.
• Pollution control: Effective waste management under Blue economy can help reduce the coastal pollution.
• Security and strategic significance: Blue economy is very crucial for tackling marine threats like ocean piracy and cross border terrorism ( 2008 Mumbai attack ).
• Blue economy is also important for maintaining the strategic balance of power in the Indian ocean region. It becomes significant in countering the String of Pearls strategy of China. 
• It also encompasses deep ocean exploration, which helps in utilising the vast resources ( like Polymetallic Nodules ) for the economic growth of India.

Challenges in India’s pursuit of a blue economy 

• Conservation vs development debate: For a developing economy like that of India, it becomes very difficult to balance between economic growth and following sustainable development practices. 
• Lack of Research and Development: India still invests only around 2% of its GDP in R&D. 
• Climate change impacts: Global warming and rising mean sea level poses threats like Ocean acidification, marine pollution, etc which are leading to loss of marine organisms and marine biodiversity. 
• Maritime security threats: Piracy, illegal fishing and other maritime crimes are also challenging for India’s dream to become a sustainable blue economy. (Mumbai Attack 2008, Drug Seize at Mundra Port 2024)

• Regulatory challenges: Lack of consistent policies and comprehensive legislation on blue economy may prove to be a roadblock

• Financial Constraints: These include a lack of fiscal measures and declining development assistance and funding from private investors through foreign direct investments, in addition to some countries also facing huge burdens of external debt.

Key Initiatives by India to Promote Blue Economy:

• Sagarmala Project: It aims for holistic port infrastructure development along the 7,516-km long coastline through modernisation, mechanisation and computerisation.
• National Fisheries policy for promoting the ‘Blue Growth Initiative
• Integrated Coastal Zone Management focuses on conserving coastal and marine resources and improving livelihood opportunities for coastal communities.
• O-SMART (‘Ocean Services, Modelling, Application, Resources and Technology), aimed at promoting ocean research and setting up early warning weather systems 
• Maritime Vision 2030

• Deep Ocean Mission: The mission aims to address scientific and economic challenges associated with ocean exploration and resource utilization.
• Indian government has also committed to expand marine fishing by 200% through the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), which targets to sustainable aquaculture and marine fisheries
• The UN has declared the period 2021-2030 as the ‘UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development’.
• India-Norway Task Force : Established to collaborate on sustainable development of ocean resources.
• Blue Bonds: Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) determines Blue Bonds as sustainable finance options 
• The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has established a Blue Economy Coordination Committee to streamline national and state plans. 
• A National Blue Economy Advisory Council (BEAC) is also proposed to provide strategic guidance.

Way Ahead: Strategies for Advancing the Blue Economy: 

• National Accounting Framework for Blue Economy and Ocean Governance
• Adapt the Coastal Marine Spatial Planning (CMSP) approach of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) - UNESCO (2009) guidelines, as has been done by many other marine-based economies
• Blue Knowledge: By providing impetus to Blue Knowledge in higher educational institutions.
•  International cooperation with global leaders in CMSP and Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) countries needs to be encouraged to adopt best practices and the transfer of technology. 
• Development of a Plastic Elimination and National Marine Litter Policy 
• Use of technology to monitor, prevent and mitigate marine pollution, including from plastics and micro plastics. 
• Encourage low carbon fisheries to improve water quality near coral reefs and put in place integrated tracking-map-based information systems to indicate closed and protected areas. 
• There is an urgent need to control marine bio-prospecting, an input into marine biotechnology.
• Establish Fishery Management Regions (FMRs) and an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM). 
• Aim to increase the Marine Conservation Areas (MCAs) to meet India’s commitments to the SDG 14 goal of increasing the areas of conservation to 10%. 
• Introduce a comprehensive central legislation for management of aquatic diseases and health along with quarantine and certification services. 
•  The regulations to enhance Ease of Doing Business (EODB) and the flow of private investment 
• Establishment of a Maritime Development Fund 
• Blue Diplomacy and Blue Skills: suitable courses at relevant educational and training institutions should be introduced along with imparting training and skill upgradation to officials currently connected with these processes. 
• An Integrated Framework for Ocean Security, Strategic Dimensions and International Engagements:  India acknowledges an important emerging economic and strategic axis that spreads from the East Coast of Africa to the Western Pacific Ocean, which can be called the Seychelles-Singapore-Samoa (SSS) axis.
• Expand the approach and implementation of Swachh Bharat to the concept of ‘Swachh Prithvi, Swachh Sagar’

For Prelims: Swachh Bharat Mission, Maritime Vision 2030, OSMART, Sagarmala Project, Deep Ocean Mission, 

For Mains: Blue Economy 

https://www.iasgyan.in/daily-current-affairs/sagarmala-project-44

SOURCE: PIB