The Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea which concluded its eleventh and final session in April last year, ranks in the history of the United Nations as the longest and most widely represented conference. The ‘III UNCLOS’ adopted the new convention on the Law of the Sea, which was formally opened for signature at Montego Bay, Jamaica in December 1982. The Conven¬tion will come into force twelve months after sixty states deposit their instruments of ratification or accession with the Secretary General of the United Nations. Even before the adoption of the Conven¬tion, many new concepts had crystallized during the on¬going sessions, and many States had taken steps to implement such concepts. India too enacted legislation on some aspects of its mari¬time zones. In 1976, article 297 of the Constitution was amended to include the new concept of exclusive economic zone. Following this amend¬ment, India enacted the Terri¬torial Waters, Continental Shelf, Exclusive Economic Zone and other Maritime Zones Act, in 1976.
Sept-Oct 1983, volume 8, No 2