Vijayawada, Feb. 28 -- Andhra Pradesh is preparing a strategic push into rare earths and titanium-based minerals by unlocking the economic potential of its vast beach sand reserves, a move aimed at reducing India's dependence on China-dominated global supply chains while creating a new downstream manufacturing hub along the state's coastline.
According to a detailed presentation by the state-run mining corporation - APMDC - Andhra Pradesh hosts the second-highest beach sand mineral reserves in India, accounting for nearly 25 per cent of national resources, with particularly high concentrations of ilmenite, rutile, zircon and monazite, the last being a key source of rare earth elements (REEs).
Beach sand minerals are critical inputs across...