India, Aug. 30 -- India, therefore, needs a National Materials Framework built around three shifts.

First, move from planning for minerals to planning for material flows. India projects electricity demand decades ahead; it should apply the same discipline to anticipating future demand for copper, aluminium, construction materials and battery inputs.

Second, make material productivity a national economic objective. Creating more value from every tonne of material consumed- through better design, longer asset lives, higher recovery rates and greater circularity- is not simply good environmental policy. It is a source of industrial competitiveness. India's cities, too, should be seen as future resource banks. Over time, buildings, infrastr...