Animate and Inanimate Resources of the Continental Shelf of Gujarat

The coastline of Gujarat is 1663 km long (over 20% of the Indian coastline) with a continental shelf of 165,000 sq. km (over 35% of the Indian continental shelf). According to the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in Jamaica in 1982, the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is delimited upto 200 nautical miles (370.4 km) from the coast. This provides an opportunity to the state to expand economic activities in over 2 lakh sq.km area of the continental shelf. The Gujarat coast has four broad coastal regions – the Gulf of Kutch, the Kathiawad coast, the Gulf of Khambhat and South Gujarat coast. The major indentation of the Gulf of Kuch and the Gulf of Khambhat account for over 60% of the coastline. There are 4 major, 5 medium and 25 minor and 5 desert rivers that discharge nutrient rich waters into the seas, particularly into the Gulf of Khambhat and South Gujarat coast. The coastal and marine environment of Gujarat support rich fisheries in the 375 km wide continental shelf, coral reefs around 34 islands in the Gulf of Kutch and mangrove vegetation in creeks estuaries and mudflats around the coast.