Govt to conduct undersea survey for mineral resources

The government is going to conduct a major oceanic survey in the country's territorial waters, including parts of the Bay of Bengal, Gulf of Cambay and Andaman Sea, to look for prospects of under-sea mineral resources and natural gas.

The Ministry of Earth Sciences is taking up this initiative along with the Geological Survey of India and the Goa-based National Antarctic and Ocean Research Centre.

"The survey will study 90,000 square kilometres of sea floor till 2014," Ministry of Earth Sciences Secretary Shailesh Nayak said.

The survey would cover the Bay of Bengal, Andaman Sea and Gulf Of Cambay.

Nayak said the main purpose of the survey would be to assess the hydrocarbon and geochemical resources in the country's territorial waters.

Public sector energy giant ONGC's help would also be taken for the project.

Nayak said that a part of the survey, in 2013-14, the government plans to study the tectonic structure in the floor of the Bay of Bengal, besides also looking at magnetic currents and the presence of phosphatic elements.

He said the state governments of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh had shown interest in being a part of the project.