New Delhi, Sep 7: India has backed a United Nations resolution promoting more accurate and equitable world map projections while making it clear that Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh must be depicted in accordance with the country’s official map.
The Ministry of External Affairs said the resolution does not endorse any particular map, projection or depiction of national boundaries, and stressed that India’s position on its territorial integrity remains unchanged.
“India voted in favour of the resolution and also made an explanation of the vote stressing on the underlying principle of promoting equal-area cartographic representation,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
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“India’s sovereign territory, including the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, must be depicted in accordance with India’s official map. Any inaccurate or misleading depiction is unacceptable,” he said.
Jaiswal added that India’s position on the issue was “clear, consistent and non-negotiable”.
The clarification came two days after the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution titled ‘Correct the Map: Rebalancing Global Cartographic Representation and Promoting Equitable Representation of the World’s Regions, Particularly Africa’ on September 4.
Sponsored by Togo, the resolution received 164 votes in favour. Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia and Ukraine abstained, while the United States voted against it.
According to the MEA, the resolution is primarily aimed at encouraging the use of equal-area map projections that better preserve the relative sizes of continental landmasses.
“The resolution neither adopts nor authenticates any particular world map, nor does it address political cartography, including international boundaries, disputed territories or place names,” Jaiswal said.
The resolution has nevertheless drawn attention to how territories are represented on maps, prompting India to reiterate that any depiction of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh must conform to its official territorial map.
Pakistan, meanwhile, rejected India’s assertion, with its Foreign Office saying that India’s unilateral actions cannot alter what it described as the internationally recognised disputed status of Jammu and Kashmir.
