News: Over a year after identifying the need for fast patrol boats and Landing Craft Assaults for deployment in Sir Creek, the Brahmaputra basin, and eastern Ladakh, the Army has moved forward by issuing two RFPs to vendors for their procurement.
About Sir Creek
- Location: It is a fluctuating 96-km tidal estuary along the India-Pakistan border.
- It flows into the Arabian Sea and divides the Rann of Kutch (India) from Sindh (Pakistan).
- It was initially known as Ban Ganga.
- It is a marshy, sparsely populated, and hard-to-police region that floods during the monsoon.
- Strategic Importance:
- Sir Creek is vital to Pakistan’s defence of Karachi, its largest city and main economic hub.
- Pakistan has built bunkers, radars, and forward bases capable of drone and infantry operations.
- India maintains a strong military presence to deter threats.
- The creek could serve as a launchpad for terrorist infiltration, as seen during the 2008 Mumbai attacks, when terrorists arrived by boat.
- Economic Importance:
- The region is believed to contain untapped oil and gas reserves, valuable to both India and Pakistan.
- It is home to important fishing grounds, vital for fishermen in Gujarat and Sindh.
- Nature of the Border Dispute
- Pakistan claims the entire creek, while India asserts that the boundary should run along the mid-channel.
- India bases its claim on the Thalweg principle, which sets a boundary along the navigable channel of a waterway.
- Pakistan rejects this, arguing the creek is not navigable, so the principle does not apply.
- Challenges: The absence of a clear border leads to frequent arrests of fishermen who inadvertently cross into the other country’s waters.
- The boundary demarcation affects the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of both countries in the Arabian Sea, influencing rights over marine resources up to 200 nautical miles.
