Ministry of Earth Sciences to form Deep Ocean Mission

New Delhi: Union Minister Harsh Vardhan on Saturday said, "We are living in an era of environmental uncertainty". Inaugurating the Ministry of Earth Sciences' Foundation Day, he said, "It's the example of environmental uncertainty that on the one hand the east and north-eastern states of Bihar and Assam are grappling with massive floods that have hit 12 million people while on the other hand, the southern state of Tamil Nadu is facing a drought-like situation."

"The Deep Ocean Mission will focus on deep-sea mining, ocean climate change advisory services, underwater vehicles and underwater robotics-related technologies. There are two important projects under the mission such as desalination plant powered by tidal energy and a submersible vehicle that can explore depths of at least 6,000 metres," said Earth Sciences Secretary Dr M Rajeevan.

The Ministry of Earth Sciences was formed in 2006 after a merger of the India Meteorological Department, National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, Earth Risk Evaluation Centre, and Ministry of Ocean Development.