712 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
either to speculation or to future litigation or to future claims, that we ought right now to settle this question, and therefore this article is introduced. Ordinarily it is always understood that the territorial limits of a State are not confined to the actual physical territory but extend beyond that for three miles in the sea. That is a general proposition which has been accepted by International Law. Now the fear is—I do not want to hide this fact—that if certain maritime States such as, for instance, Cochin, Travancore or Cutch came into the Indian Union, unless there was a specific provision in the Constitution such as the one we are trying to introduce, it would be still open to them to say : “Our accession gives jurisdiction to the Central Government over the physical territory of the original States; but our territory which includes territorial waters is free from the jurisdiction of the Central Government and we will still continue to exercise our jurisdiction not only on the physical territory, but also on the territorial waters, which according to the International Law and according to our original status before accession belong to us.” We therefore want to state expressly in the Constitution that when any maritime States join the Indian Union, the territorial waters of that Maritime State will go to the Central Government. That kind of question shall never be subject to any kind of dispute or adjudication. That is the reason why we want to make this provision in article
271-A.
Shri M. Ananthasayanam Ayyangar : What about the ownership of the waters themselves ?
The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : What do you want to own water for ? You may then want to own the sky above.
Shri M. Ananthasayanam Ayyangar : For the manufacture of salt, etc.
The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : Your laws will prevail over that area. Whatever law you make will have its operation over the area of three miles from the physical territory. That is what is wanted and that you get by this.
Shri Mahavir Tyagi : Waters have not been included.
The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : According to the International Law, the territory of a State not only includes its physical territory, but also three miles beyond. Any law that you make will operate over that area.