India signed an international agreement to protect marine biodiversity on the high seas at the United Nations General Assembly yesterday.

The pact, formally known as the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement, is signed by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. This Agreement is aimed at ensuring that marine life is conserved and used in a sustainable manner on the high seas, which is beyond nations’ territorial waters, and the exclusive economic zone could extend up to 370 km from the shores, which constitutes about two-thirds of all the oceans.

The agreement was about 20 years in the making before it was adopted internationally last year, and it bans destructive fishing and pollution.

Under the agreement, countries cannot claim sovereign rights over marine resources on the high seas, and it ensures equitable sharing of benefits from those resources. The Cabinet approved India’s participation in the agreement in July.