Mumbai, Oct. 14 -- India is working to improve rare earth mineral processing technologies and scale them up for commercial use as the government seeks to establish an end-to-end domestic critical minerals ecosystem, Mines Ministry Joint Secretary Kadam Sandeep Vasant said at the India Mines and Minerals Conclave 2026 in New Delhi.
Vasant said India had substantial rare earth deposits, but improvements in processing were required to create commercially viable and stable operations. The National Critical Mineral Mission is supporting research and development across the country, with the aim of moving existing capabilities from laboratory-scale operations to pilot and commercial stages.
The mission covers the entire domestic value chain, including exploration, mining, extraction, processing, refining and downstream industries. The approach also includes urban mining and the recovery of minerals from secondary resources, such as mine tailings and dumps, alongside conventional mining activities.
Although India has significant rare earth resources, minerals including lithium and nickel are not available domestically in the quantities required. Overseas sourcing will therefore remain important, with Khanij Bidesh India (KABIL) established to identify exploration and mining opportunities in other countries.
The government is also introducing financial support for companies investing in critical minerals. A Rs. 15 bn incentive scheme for critical mineral recycling covers electronic waste, end-of-life batteries and other feedstock, while 58 companies have been declared eligible. The government expects the country to develop substantial recycling capacity over the next two years.
India's status as one of the world's largest consumers of electronic goods provides a sizable potential resource base for recovering critical minerals. Vasant said stronger collection systems and processing capacity would be needed, alongside initiatives covering rare earth permanent magnets, advanced chemistry cell batteries and speciality steel manufacturing, to build a stable domestic ecosystem.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Construction World.