New Delhi, Jul 23 (PTI) Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said on Wednesday that India is taking active interest in the polar regions of Arctic and Antarctic as he chaired a meeting of Parliament's Standing Committee on External Affairs.

Senior officials of the ministries of external affairs and earth sciences briefed the committee members.

Also Read | IndiGo 6E7966 Flight Safety Scare: Plane Operating With ATR 72-600 Aircraft Aborts Takeoff in Ahmedabad Due to Technical Snag, Passengers and Crew Safely Evacuated.

Though developed countries are ahead of India in terms of presence in the two regions, which carry increasing geopolitical significance, India has also become involved and is taking active interest in both places, Tharoor said.

It was a very unusual and interesting topic, he said, noting that Arctic and Antarctic are very important for scientific exploration. While Arctic has faced some geopolitical conflict, Antarctic is considered a "global common", he added.

Also Read | Air India Plane Crash: New Delhi Trashes British Media Report That 2 UK Families Received Wrong Bodies of Victims; All Mortal Remains Were Handled With Utmost Professionalism, Says MEA.

India has been particularly active in Antarctic and has a station there as well, he added.

The agenda of the meeting was "India's Role and Presence in the Arctic and Antarctic Regions".

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)