Marshland that guards India’s maritime destiny

Whoever controls Sir Creek controls the baseline from which the Arabian Sea is measured. It’s not just mud and mangroves—it’s maritime power. — Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Satish Nambiar, former Deputy Chief of Army Staff.

- SANTHOSH MATHEW

At first glance, Sir Creek appears to be nothing more than a remote sliver of swamp-a 96-kilometre-long strip of tidal estuary where the Arabian Sea meets the marshy landmass of the Rann of Kutch. Yet beneath its murky waters lies a geopolitical riddle that has defied resolution for decades.

Between India and Pakistan, this disputed creek is not just a boundary line-it is a symbol of how geography, history, and strategic interests entwine in South Asia’s most sensitive frontier.

Sir Creek, located between Gujarat’s Kutch region and Pakistan’s Sindh province, looks deceptively insignificant on the map. But as every strategist knows, appearances in geopolitics can mislead. "In border disputes," Lt. Gen. Satish Nambiar once observed, "even a patch of sand or swamp can define the perimeter of national pride and security." His words perfectly capture the essence of this marshland that continues to shape the maritime imagination of both nations.

The origin of the Sir Creek dispute dates back to the colonial era. In 1914, the then Government of Bombay attempted to demarcate the boundary between the princely state of Kutch and the province of Sindh, then part of British India. The dispute arises from two contradictory maps and administrative resolutions-one from 1914 and another from 1925. India bases its claim on the latter, arguing that the entire creek lies on its side, while Pakistan maintains that the boundary runs along the mid-channel, based on the 1914 version.

This may sound like an arcane cartographic debate, but the stakes could not be higher. The point where the land boundary ends and the sea boundary begins determines the exact line from which territorial waters, the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and continental shelf rights are measured. Control over Sir Creek could extend India’s EEZ deeper into the Arabian Sea - a zone rich in potential oil, gas, and marine resources.