DR BALAKRISHNAN NAIR T M
Director, Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, Hyderabad.
Dr. Balakrishnan Nair is a Director, Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, Hyderabad. He is one of the founding members of INCOIS, having over 25 years of experience as a researcher and leading the Ocean Information and Forecast Service Group of INCOIS for the last 19 years.
Dr. Balakrishnan Nair holds a Ph.D. degree in Marine Science.He published more than 110 papers in international and national SCI journals of high impact factor, in addition to many technical reports and popular articles. He is a Fellow of the Telangana Academy of Sciences (FTASc).
He is a steering committee Member for Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) of IOC/UNESCO, Vice Chair of Expert Team on MetOcean Requirements (ET-MOR) of WMO, Vice Chair of Expert Team on Marine Service (ET-MS) of RAII-WMO, the National Coordinator for Ship Observation Team (SOT) of GOOS, COordinated Wave CLImate Program (COWCLIP) and member of Task Teams of SOT and Data Buoy Cooperation Panel (DBCP). He also played a pivotal role in establishing multilateral programs with Regional Integrated Multi-hazard Early Warning System (RIMES) to establish coastal real-time observation systems and developing ocean forecast systems for IOR countries. He is also a member of WMO’s Severe Weather Forecast Project (SWFP-South Asia).
Dr. Nair was conferred with several national and international awards/fellowships, including the prestigious National Geosciences Award-2014, from the Ministry of Mines; Silver Award (2008–09) for design and development of the INCOIS website & ocean portal under the category “Best Government Website” during the National Award for e-governance 2008–09, instituted by the Government of India; Certificate of Merit (2007) for outstanding contribution from Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India; Young Scientist Award from Indian Association of Sedimentologists in 2000; and many more.
The oceans, covering over 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface, have long been perceived as infinite reservoirs of resources. However, with the escalation of climate change impacts and pressures from human activities, a strategic rethinking of ocean governance is imperative. In this edition of GnY Live, Dr. Bala Krishnan Nair, a senior scientist and Director at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), sheds light on India’s Blue Economy landscape. The dialogue delves into the current status of India’s draft Blue Economy policy, its sectoral focus, the overlooked dimensions of climate risk, and the crucial contributions of science in enabling marine governance. Dr. Nair outlines how living marine resources—encompassing both traditional fisheries and emerging sectors like mariculture—form the backbone of coastal livelihoods. He stresses the importance of integrating climate resilience, disaster preparedness, and real-time ocean information into long-term national planning. The conversation ultimately provides a vision for a sustainable and inclusive ocean economy in India, shaped by both technological foresight and grassroots engagement.
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