Bharati Station Indian Antarctic Base

Bharati Station opened in 2012 on the Larsemann Hills, Prydz Bay, East Antarctica — a rocky coastal exposure that stays partially ice-free in summer. It replaced India’s older Dakshin Gangotri station and runs a winter crew of around 25, expanding in the austral summer. The modular design is compact and purpose-built, with everything under one roof to deal with the brutal winter. Fuel depot, communications, medical facilities, and emergency resupply capacity are operational. It’s the Indian Antarctic Programme’s logistical anchor for East Antarctic science work.

Access is by ship from Goa, India, or occasionally coordinated with other national programmes operating in the Prydz Bay region. The Larsemann Hills are a rare ice-free oasis worth knowing about — shared with Russian Progress Station and Chinese Zhongshan Station, meaning more logistical infrastructure is clustered in this corner of East Antarctica than almost anywhere else on the continent.

India's modern East Antarctic base on the Larsemann Hills.