National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) is an autonomous R&D Institution under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES). NCPOR spearheads the Indian polar research activities in the Arctic, Antarctic, Southern Ocean, and the Himalaya. The Indian exploration of Polar Regions started in 1981 with the Antarctic Expedition. It expanded its horizon to Southern Ocean research in 2004, with a bipolar focus on the Arctic in 2007 and Himalayan activities in 2013. The Indian scientists also traversed to the South Pole in 2010 to commemorate the 100 years of the first human presence in the geographic South Pole. NCPOR is also a nodal agency for major geo-scientific and mineral resources explorations of strategic importance.