India’s next chapter in the world’s southernmost continent, Antarctica, is all set to unfold. The Finance Ministry has granted approval for Maitri II — the country’s newest research station proposed to come up in eastern Antarctica. Once built and readied by January 2029, Maitri II will become India’s fourth research base on the frozen continent. Goa-based National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) is the nodal agency responsible for operating and organising missions to Antarctica and the Arctic. The plan for Maitri II was first proposed in late 2023. The in-principle approval was granted on October 4 this year. NCPOR director Thamban Meloth told The Indian Express: “Maitri II will be built in eastern Antarctica. It has a financial outlay of about `2,000 crore, for over seven years.” India’s first research base in Antarctica, Dakshin Gangotri, operated for a few years. Currently, Maitri, operational since 1989, and Bharati, operational since 2012, support India’s scientific community in gathering data exclusive to the wilderness of Antarctica. Tentatively, the sea voyage between South Africa and Antarctica lasts anywhere between one to three weeks, depending on the route. If weather permits, ships can reach Maitri in a week but the journey to Bharati takes longer. Summer and winter expeditions see participation by India’s meteorologists, atmospheric scientists, geologists, glaciologists, botanists, zoologists and seismologists. India has been conducting research in Antarctica since the early 1980s. Spread across 14 million sq. km, about 98 percent of the continent is covered by thick ice sheets believed to have formed 25 million years ago. The icy landmass holds nearly 75 percent of the earth’s freshwater reserves. As the world’s fifth-largest continent, Antarctica offers unique wildlife and extreme weather — cold, dry, and windy — making it one of the most sought-after research destinations for unexplored terrains. Maitri, which has been hosting researchers since 1989, is located along the Schirmacher Oasis — a 20 km-long ice-free landmass in East Antarctica surrounded by ice sheets and shelves. An inland station located about 100 km from the shore and at an elevation of around 50 metres above sea level, Maitri comprises the main building, a fuel farm, a fuel station, a lake water pump house, a summer camp, and several smaller containerised modules. The main building offers regulated power supply, automated heating, incinerator toilets, cold storage, as well as living, dining, lounge, and laboratory spaces. Maitri can accommodate between 25 and 40 scientists, depending on mission requirements and season. It was originally built with a design life of 10 years. On the need for Maitri II, M Ravichandran, secretary, MoES, said: “Maitri has become an old facility and there were some flaws that emerged in its waste management. But we plan to retain it as India’s summer camp”. For officials and experts, the “in-principle” approval means that groundwork for the new research station can now begin. According to MoES, Maitri II will be larger than Maitri I, with plans to design it as a green research base. The proposal includes using renewable energy sources — solar power for summer expeditions and wind energy to harness the strong Antarctic winds — to run the station’s operations. The new base will also feature upgraded infrastructure and living conditions, including improved toilets. “And most importantly, we plan to deploy automated instruments onboard Maitri II. These instruments will keep recording data and relay it to mainland India, even if the station remains unmanned for some period,” the MoES secretary said. In 2023, a ministerial-level delegation from MoES, including then MoES minister Kiren Rijiju, visited Antarctica- specifically to Maitri. The visit was an opportunity for officials to assess the need for Maitri’s successor and shortlist potential sites. Terrain mapping and environmental studies have been underway in the background, and a German company had, in the meantime, participated in and won the design competition organised for Maitri II. With the Finance Ministry's nod, Meloth said: “We will now award the company a contract for drawing up a Detailed Project Report (DPR) and carrying out the environment assessments in Antarctica. But the actual, on-site construction will begin upon receiving the environmental approval”. Much like building space stations, constructing a research facility at the poles is no easy task. Given the extreme weather conditions and the fragility of the region, construction is complex — all building materials must be shipped from the mainland, balancing functionality with ecological sensitivity. r. This means conducting rigorous surveys, transporting and using prefabricated materials capable of withstanding storms and extreme weather, and cutting icy roads — all while ensuring minimal damage to the fragile ecology. “Sending cargo to Antarctica is a challenge,” Meloth said. The cargo and required vehicles will be shipped in multiple batches. “Crucially, the construction work is possible only during the summer months in the southern hemisphere.” According to MoES officials, some groundwork could begin at the selected site in the coming summer months of the southern hemisphere between October and March. Experts will begin making site visits and conduct experiments such as wind-tunnelling — a study of aerodynamic forces to help design structures suited for the harsh Antarctic winds. The tentative timeline shared by MoES in 2023 shows that construction of the research station is expected to be completed by January 2029. In the run-up to the construction phase, about 18 months would be required to award contracts, conduct site surveys, and pave specialised roads. Another 18 months would be needed to procure and transport prefabricated materials for the station — first to Cape Town in South Africa, then to the Indian Barrier, a cargo and supply unloading site some 120 km from Maitri, and eventually to the Maitri II site. Then comes the third and final phase — transporting the remaining prefabricated materials and assembling them at the Maitri II site.
