India has recently moved to unlock the commercial deep-sea and high-seas fishing market — issuing digital Letters of Authorisation and duty-free catch reforms. A new report from the Ministry of Earth Sciences has now added scientific and ecological boundaries to the initiative.
Data shared by the government earlier this week highlighted the resources to be found along the continental slope beyond 200 metres — including “substantial, currently underexploited stocks of deep-sea shrimps, perches, scombroids, flatfishes, and eels”. The report published by the Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology also identified several ecologically important marine areas that serve as nurseries and habitats for vulnerable ecosystems.
“Fish caught by an Indian fishing vessel in Exclusive Economic Zone or on the High Seas will be made free of duty. Landing of such fish on foreign ports will be treated as export of goods,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had assured while outlining the FY27 Budget in Parliament.
India’s plans for blue economy
India is the second-largest fish-producing country in the world and accounts for 8% of global production. According to government data shared in October 2025, the fisheries sector supports nearly 30 million livelihoods and contributes significantly to exports, with fishery products earning Rs 60,523 crore in FY 24. The Centre had also outlined plans to build a $100 billion ‘blue economy’ through its deep ocean mission and marine resources in 2021.
A NITI Aayog report from October 2025 indicates that the EEZ has an estimated potential yield of 7.16 million tonnes, including both conventional and non-conventional resources. The report noted that responsible utilisation of deep-sea and offshore fisheries can “enhance seafood exports, generate employment opportunities, and reduce pressure on coastal fisheries, while ensuring ecological sustainability”.
Despite a thriving fisheries sector, deep-sea resources beyond the continental shelf have remained largely unexploited. The government plan for a blue economy envisioned a comprehensive framework covering the deep-sea fishing sector within the EEZ and international waters accessed through regional fisheries agreements.
New permit a game changer?
The EEZ is nearly 23,72,298 sq. km that stretches for 200 nautical miles beyond the country. New Delhi holds sovereign rights to explore, manage and make use of all living and non-living resources within this space. Indian fishermen can now obtain an ‘access pass’ to operate in the Exclusive Economic Zone through a completely online and free process.
The government now has moved to expand fishing opportunities beyond the exclusive economic zone of India — into an ocean teeming with commercially valuable fish such as tuna. The Letter of Authorisation for fishing in the high seas was launched in early July. Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh noted during the event that India had invested more than Rs 39,000 crore in the fisheries sector through various flagship schemes. This had prompted “more than 100% growth in fish production and record seafood exports in 2025-26 despite global trade challenges”.
According to the ‘National Report on Deep-Sea and Distant-Water Fishery Resources of the Indian EEZ’ report released by CMLRE on Thursday, there are rich resources that can be tapped in the deep seas. It examines resources across the mesopelagic or ‘twilight zone’ that extends from 200 to 1,000 metres below the ocean surface. These waters contain species such as lanternfishes, deep-sea shrimps and cephalopods — while their vertical migration plays an important role in the ocean’s biological carbon pump and global climate regulation. Species found along the continental slope beyond 200 metres included deep-sea shrimps, perches, scombroids, flatfishes, eels as well as distant-water species such as tunas, billfishes, sharks, oceanic squids and Antarctic krill.
Tech-driven approach
The report also highlighted a tech-driven approach to marine resource assessment — focusing on the use of fisheries acoustics, environmental DNA, autonomous observing platforms, satellite observations, artificial intelligence and advanced ecosystem modelling. These tools are expected to support marine spatial planning and more effective, science-based management of ocean resources.
“This scientific foundation directly reinforces India’s Vision 2047, which prioritises the Blue Economy as a core pillar of national growth. It also strengthens India’s global commitments to UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life Below Water) and the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development,” a PIB note adds.