India and Antarctic Treaty:

• India signed the Antarctic Treaty on 19th August 1983 and soon thereafter received consultative status on 12th September 1983.
• The Madrid Protocol was signed by India which came into force on 14th January, 1998.
• India is one of the 29 Consultative Parties to the Antarctic Treaty.
• India is also a member of Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programme (COMNAP) and Scientific Committee of Antarctica Research (SCAR).
• All these representations show the significant position that India holds among the nations involved in Antarctic research.
• The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was signed in Madrid on October 4, 1991 and entered into force in 1998.
• It designates Antarctica as a “natural reserve, devoted to peace and science”.

Source: EPIC October 2021