- Why in news
- On 7 September 2026, CMLRE (MoES) began a five-day Deep-sea Macrofauna Taxonomy School at Kochi, run under the ISA's Sustainable Seabed Knowledge Initiative. It runs until 11 September 2026.
- What it is
- The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is the body through which UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) states organise and control mineral-related activities in the seabed area beyond national jurisdiction, called the Area. It is based in Kingston, Jamaica. It issues exploration contracts and is drafting rules for exploitation, with environmental protection as a core duty.
- Legal basis
- ISA was set up under UNCLOS 1982 and the 1994 Implementing Agreement. It began functioning in 1994.
- Headquarters
- ISA is headquartered in Kingston, Jamaica.
- Mandate
- It regulates mineral resources of the Area, the seabed beyond national jurisdiction, which is treated as the common heritage of mankind.
- Organs
- The main organs are the Assembly, the Council and the Secretariat, plus the Legal and Technical Commission and the Finance Committee. The Enterprise is the body meant to carry out mining on ISA's own behalf.
- Head of ISA
- Ms. Leticia Carvalho is the Secretary-General of ISA and was Chief Guest at the school.
- Platform used
- The school is organised under ISA's Sustainable Seabed Knowledge Initiative (SSKI) platform, with CMLRE, IORA and Korea's MABIK as partners.
Don’t confuse with ISA vs ITLOS: ISA regulates seabed mineral activities in the Area. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), at Hamburg, settles disputes under UNCLOS.
Don’t confuse with CMLRE vs NIOT: CMLRE (Kochi) studies marine living resources and ecology. NIOT (Chennai) develops ocean technology such as deep-sea mining and submersible systems.
International bodies and relations: the largest group of news questions in Prelims (61 since 2013), often about background, members and location. In Mains, 27 news-triggered questions, mostly on India's interests.
Why it matters
- Standard methods for counting deep-sea species give ISA better baseline data for environmental rules on seabed mining.
- It builds India's standing in deep-sea research and ties with Indian Ocean Rim states.
Problems
- Deep-sea species are poorly known, and many are undescribed, so impact assessments are uncertain.
- Training is short and small in scale compared with the technical gaps in developing states.
Way forward
- Apply the standardised methods in a common open-access biodiversity database.
- Continue follow-up training and joint cruises among Indian Ocean states.
Put in your answer
Capacity building under ISA: A training school of about 30 early-career researchers from Indian Ocean states shows how ISA helps developing countries take part in deep-sea science.
Common heritage of mankind: The seabed Area beyond national jurisdiction is held as the common heritage of mankind under UNCLOS, which is the basis of ISA's role.
- 2023Mains GS2 · Q20Discuss IMO's role in protecting marine environment and enhancing maritime safety and security.
- 2014Mains GS1 · Q24Critically evaluate ocean resources that can meet the world's resource crisis.
- 2021Prelims Q56Which statements on seabed mining licences, India's exploration, and seafloor rare earths are correct?
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: ISA is a lasting international body with testable background facts (legal basis, role). The release is only a training school, so the card carries no question.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.