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UPSC Prelims 1979 · Indian Geography · India’s Land and Borders
The sea territory of India extends up to
- (a) 4 nautical miles
- (b) 12 nautical miles
- (c) 200 nautical miles
- (d) 300 nautical miles
Show the answer and explanation
Answer: (b) 12 nautical miles
India’s territorial sea extends 12 nautical miles from the baseline (UNCLOS).
The idea
Maritime zones are measured from a coastal baseline, rather than simply from any point on a beach. Territorial waters carry sovereignty, subject to rules such as innocent passage. Farther zones provide specified enforcement powers or resource rights rather than the same full territorial status.
Why the others are wrong
(c) 200 nm is the Exclusive Economic Zone.
The trap
EEZ (200 nm) vs territorial sea (12 nm).
Elimination technique
The question asks about sea territory, which corresponds to the territorial sea. The 200-nautical-mile figure belongs to the EEZ, a different legal zone.
Also know
One nautical mile equals 1,852 metres. The distances are all measured from the baseline, not added successively. The continental shelf concerns seabed and subsoil rights; it is different from the water-column rights of the EEZ.
🔒 Territorial sea 12 nm · contiguous zone 24 nm · EEZ 200 nm.
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