1. Short title and commencement.—(1) This Act may be called the Offshore Areas Mineral
(Development and Regulation) Act, 2002.
(2) It shall come into force on such date1
as the Central Government may, by notification in the
Official Gazette, appoint.
2. Declaration as to expediency of Union control.—It is hereby declared that it is expedient in the
public interest that the Union should take under its control the regulation of mines and the development of
minerals in offshore areas to the extent herein after provided.
3. Application.—(1) This Act shall apply to all minerals in the offshore areas including any mineral
prescribed by notification under clause (g) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962
(33 of 1962) except mineral oils and hydrocarbons related thereto.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not
in derogation of, any other law for the time being in force in the offshore areas.
4. Definitions.—In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “administering authority” means an authority notified, in the Official Gazette, by the Central
Government for the purposes of this Act;
(b) “atomic minerals” means the minerals included in atomic minerals specified in Part B of the
First Schedule to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 (67 of 1957)
2 *[and the rules made thereunder;]
(c) “Coast Guard” means the Coast Guard constituted under the Coast Guard Act, 1978
(30 of 1978);
2
[(ca) “composite licence” means the exploration licence-cum-production lease, which is a two
stage operating right granted for the purpose of undertaking exploration operation followed by
production operation;
(cb) “dispatch” means removal of minerals or mineral products from the area covered under the
production lease and includes the consumption of minerals and mineral products within such area;]
(d) “exploration licence” means a licence granted 3
[for the purpose of undertaking exploration
operation];
(e) “exploration operation” means any operation undertaken for the purpose of exploring, locating
or proving the mineral deposits;
2
[(ea) “Government company” shall have the meaning assigned to it in clause (45) of section 2 of
the Companies Act, 2013, (18 of 2013);]
(f) “holder”, in relation to any operating right, means the lessee, licensee or permittee, as the case
may be, in respect of such operating right;
(g) “hydrocarbon” means very large group of chemical compounds composed of carbon and
hydrogen;
1. 15th January, 2010, vide Order No. S.O. 338(E), dated by 11th February, 2010, see Gazette of India, Extraordinary,
Part II, sec. 3(ii).
2. Ins. by Act 17 of 2023, s. 2 (w.e.f. 17-8-2023).
*. Section 24 of the Offshore Areas Mineral (Development and Regulation) (Amendment) Act, 2023 (17 of 2023) provides for
power to remove difficulties regarding amendments made therein which reads as under:
“24. Removal of difficulties.—(1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions not inconsistent with the provisions of the
principal Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient for removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made under this sub-section after the expiry of a period of two years from the
commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament.”
3. Subs. by s. 2, ibid., for “under section 12” (w.e.f. 17-8-2023).
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(h) “Indian national” means a citizen of India and includes a firm or other association, if all the
members of the firm or, as the case may be, the members of the association, are citizens of India;
(i) “lessee” means the person in whose name 1
[a production lease] is granted;
(j) “licensee” means the person in whose name 2
[a composite licence, or an exploration licence, is
granted];
(k) “mine” means any place in the offshore area wherein any exploration or production operation
is carried on, together with any vessel, erection, appliance, artificial island or platform and premises
in the offshore area used for the purposes of exploration, winning, treating or preparing minerals,
obtaining or extracting any mineral or metal by any mode or method, and includes any area covered
by 3
[a composite licence, or an exploration licence, or a production lease] where exploration or
production operation has been, or is being, or may be, carried on under the provisions of this Act;
(l) “mineral” includes all minerals except mineral oil and hydrocarbon resources relating thereto;
(m) “mineral oil” includes natural gas and petroleum;
(n) “offshore area” means the territorial waters, continental shelf, exclusive economic zone and
other maritime zones of India under the Territorial Waters, Continental Shelf, Exclusive Economic
Zone and Other Maritime Zones Act, 1976 (80 of 1976);
(o) “operating right” means the right of holder of a reconnaissance permit, or 4
[a composite
licence, or an exploration licence, or a production lease;]
(p) “permittee” means the person in whose name the reconnaissance permit is granted;
(q) “pollution of offshore environment” means the introduction by any person, directly or
indirectly, of substances or energy into the offshore environment which results, or is likely to result,
in deleterious effect on living resources and marine life, hazards to human health, hindrance to marine
activities, including fishing and other legitimate uses of the offshore areas and impairment of quality
of sea water for use and reduction of amenities;
(r) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
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[(ra) “production”, with its grammatical variation and cognate expressions, means the winning
of mineral within the area covered under a production lease for the purpose of processing or
dispatch;]
(s) “production operation” means any operation undertaken for the purpose of winning any
mineral from the offshore area and includes any operation directly or indirectly necessary there for or
incidental thereto;
(t) “production lease” means a lease granted 6
[under section 8 or section 12 or section 13] which
confers an exclusive right for the purpose of undertaking production operation;
(u) “reconnaissance operation” means any preliminary geo-scientific survey undertaken for the
purpose of searching or locating mineral deposits;
(v) “reconnaissance permit” means a permit granted 7*** for the purpose of undertaking
reconnaissance operation;
5
[(va) “standard block” means a block of the offshore area of one minute latitude by one minute
longitude and includes the seabed and its subsoil and waters superjacent to the seabed within such
block;]
(w) “vessel” includes any ship, 8
[barge, boat, container, sailing vessel or stationary vessel or any
other vessel of any description, submersible or otherwise and remotely operated or otherwise, used in
any operation or any activity pursuant thereto].