Sir Creek

IN NEWS:

• Pakistan has included Sir Creek in its new map released recently.

About Sir Creek

• Sir Creek, originally Ban Ganga, is a 96 km (60 mi) tidal estuary in uninhabited marshlands of Indus river delta on the border of India and Pakistan.
• The creek opens up into the Arabian Sea and separates the Gujarat state of India from the Sindh province of Pakistan. Both Gujarat and Sindh were part of Bombay Presidency till 1936.
• The dispute lies in the interpretation of the maritime boundary line between Kutch and Sindh.
• Before India’s independence, the provincial region was a part of the Bombay Presidency of British India. But after India’s independence in 1947, Sindh became a part of Pakistan while Kutch remained a part of India.
• Pakistan claims the entire creek as per paragraphs 9 and 10 of the Bombay Government Resolution of 1914 signed between then the Government of Sindh and Rao Maharaj of Kutch.
• The resolution, which demarcated the boundaries between the two territories, included the creek as part of Sindh, thus setting the boundary as the eastern flank of the creek popularly known as Green Line.
• But India claims that the boundary lies mid-channel as depicted in another map drawn in 1925 and implemented by the installation of mid-channel pillars back in 1924.
• In its support, it cites the Thalweg Doctrine in International Maritime Law, which states that river boundaries between two states may be divided by the mid-channel if the water-body is navigable.
• Apart from strategic location, Sir Creek’s core importance is fishing resources. Sir Creek is considered to be among the largest fishing grounds in Asia.
• Another vital reason is the possible presence of great oil and gas concentration under the sea, which are currently unexploited thanks to the impending deadlock on the issue.

PRELIMS QUESTION

Consider the following statements regarding Sir Creek:
1.Sir Creek is a tidal estuary in Indus River Delta region.
2.It separates the Kutch Region of India from Sindh region of Pakistan.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a)1 only
(b)2 only
(c)Both 1 and 2
(d)Neither 1 nor 2

Answer to prelims question