Govt to boost India's critical minerals self-reliance with financial incentives
New Delhi: The government announced on Wednesday its plans to introduce financial incentives for the development of critical minerals, including lithium, as part of its National Critical Minerals Mission.
This development follows previous unsuccessful attempts to boost the sector. In June, the Centre awarded development rights for a lithium block in Chhattisgarh, but a similar effort in Jammu and Kashmir failed to generate interest due to concerns over financial feasibility.
Mines Joint Secretary Veena Kumari Dermal, speaking at the Budget Seminar, highlighted that securing loans from multilateral financial institutions will be a key focus for advancing the sector.
Further, the government will push for global research and development collaborations throughout the critical minerals value chain.
To promote the involvement of Indian public and private sector firms in acquiring assets abroad, targeted subsidies will be offered for mining and the establishment of evacuation infrastructure.
The Ministry of Mines will closely coordinate with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to facilitate the development of mineral evacuation infrastructure.
The Union Budget 2024-25 had previously proposed the launch of the Critical Minerals Mission, aimed at domestic production, recycling, and overseas acquisition of critical mineral assets.
This mission is designed to secure the nation's supply chain for essential minerals by ensuring availability from both domestic and international sources.
It also seeks to strengthen value chains by improving the technological, regulatory, and financial ecosystems to support innovation, skill development, and global competitiveness in areas such as exploration, mining, processing, and recycling of minerals.
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