Fifty five new Fellowships were sanctioned during the financial year 1997-98 in addition to 34 continuing ones covering different disciplines like Marine Living Resources, Microbial Diversity in Marine Ecosystem, Geo-chemical Studies of Estuaries and Shelf,etc.

Recognizing the important role the academic institutions can play in promotion of front-ranking research in Ocean Science & Technology and related human resources development,Ocean Science & Technology Cells (OSTCs) were set up in the first phase as detailed below:

Manglore University,Manglore - Marine Geology and Geophysics

Goa University,Goa - Marine Microbiology

Bhavnagar University,Bhavnagar - Marine Coastal Ecology,West Coast

Berhampur University,Berhampur - Marine Coastal Ecology,West Coast

Andhra University,Visakhapatnam - Coastal Marine Culture Systems

These OSTCs would eventually develop into Centres of Excellance in the respective fields.