India, Aug. 15 -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced the National Deep Water Exploration Mission to achieve energy security.

"We are preparing to extract deep ocean resources such as reserves of oil and gas," Modi said in his Independence Day speech. Terming the mission as "Samudra Manthan" (the mythical churning of the sea), he said the initiative will be executed in "Mission Mode".

India is the world's third largest crude oil consumer after the US and China. It imported 232.7 million tonnes of crude worth $157.5 billion in 2024-25 . The country imports over 88% of crude oil it processes and also exports various refined products.

"A large part of the budget is spent on bringing in petrol, diesel, and gas. Lakhs and crore...