{"id":4096,"date":"2026-09-19T04:12:07","date_gmt":"2026-09-19T04:12:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kingmakersiasacademy.com\/current-affairs\/?p=4096"},"modified":"2026-09-20T04:21:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-20T04:21:10","slug":"polymetallic-nodules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kingmakersiasacademy.com\/current-affairs\/polymetallic-nodules\/","title":{"rendered":"Polymetallic Nodules"},"content":{"rendered":"<table style=\"font-size: 16px; font-style: normal;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<blockquote><p><b>SYLLABUS: Indian Geography<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>General Studies \u2013 : I <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Distribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and the Indian subcontinent); factors responsible for the location of primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries in various parts of the world (including India).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><b>IN NEWS:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Deep-sea discovery, environmental responsibility<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>QUESTION: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What are polymetallic nodules? Discuss their strategic significance for India and examine the environmental concerns associated with their extraction from the deep seabed. (10 marks, 150 words)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>ANSWER: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Polymetallic nodules, also known as manganese nodules, are rock-like mineral accretions found scattered across the deep ocean floor, primarily at depths between 4,000 and 6,000 meters. Formed over millions of years through the precipitation of metals from seawater and pore waters around a central nucleus (such as a shell fragment or shark tooth), they are rich sources of valuable critical minerals.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Composition and Critical Minerals<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Manganese:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Comprises the largest fraction (~20\u201330%).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Iron:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Accounts for around 5\u201310%.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Nickel, Copper, and Cobalt:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Present in smaller percentages (0.5\u20131.5%), yet economically crucial for modern high-tech and green technologies.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Trace Metals:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Contain trace amounts of molybdenum, titanium, lithium, and rare earth elements (REEs).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Strategic Significance for India<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Energy Transition and Clean Tech:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Nickel, cobalt, and copper are essential inputs for electric vehicle (EV) batteries, energy storage systems, and renewable energy infrastructure, directly supporting India&#8217;s net-zero transition goals.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Reducing Import Dependency:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> India relies heavily on foreign supply chains for key critical minerals (e.g., cobalt and nickel). Deep-sea mining offers long-term resource independence and supply chain resilience.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Deep Ocean Mission Alignment:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Exploration in the Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB) forms a cornerstone of India&#8217;s flagship Deep Ocean Mission, boosting domestic capabilities in underwater technology, deep-sea mining systems, and submersibles (such as <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Matsya 6000<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Geopolitical and Maritime Stature:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Being designated a &#8220;Pioneer Investor&#8221; by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) grants India exclusive rights to explore vast areas in the CIOB, strengthening its maritime presence and leadership in the Indian Ocean region.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Environmental Concerns Associated with Extraction<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Benthic Ecosystem Destruction:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Nodules serve as the primary hard substrate for sessile organisms (such as deep-sea sponges and corals). Scraping or vacuuming the seabed permanently destroys these unique abyssal habitats.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Sediment Plumes:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Mining equipment creates large underwater dust plumes that travel vast distances. These suspended sediments smother benthic creatures, clog filtering apparatuses of marine fauna, and disrupt light penetration.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Noise and Light Pollution:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Heavy machinery operating at extreme pressure generates sound and artificial light, disrupting deep-sea organisms that rely on bioluminescence and auditory cues for navigation, mating, and feeding.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Impact on Ocean Carbon Sequestration:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The deep ocean floor acts as a massive carbon sink. Disturbing benthic sediments risks altering microbial communities and disrupting deep-sea biogeochemical cycles critical to global carbon storage.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Slow Ecosystem Recovery:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Abyssal ecosystems operate in near-static conditions with extremely slow metabolic and growth rates. Recovery from physical disruption could take centuries or millennia, if it occurs at all.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Polymetallic nodules present a promising frontier for securing critical minerals vital to global clean energy transitions and national resource security, particularly for India&#8217;s strategic deep-sea ambitions. However, the severe and potentially irreversible ecological risks\u2014ranging from benthic habitat destruction to ocean carbon cycle disruption\u2014highlight the urgent need for caution.<\/span><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<blockquote><p><b>PYQ REFERENCE UPSC 2021<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;Critically evaluate the resource potentials of the Indian Ocean, with special reference to polymetallic nodules.&#8221; (15 Marks \/ 250 Words)<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><b>SOURCE: <a href=\"https:\/\/epaper.thehindu.com\/ccidist-ws\/th\/th_international\/issues\/204891\/OPS\/G08GH3IIC.1+GLRGI3M8J.1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Hindu e-paper &#8211; Deep-sea discovery, environmental responsibility<\/a><br \/>\n<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SYLLABUS: Indian Geography General Studies \u2013 : I Distribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and 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