New Delhi: Mines Secretary V L Kantha Rao said that the Ministry of Mines is in the process of auctioning 20 blocks of critical minerals including lithium and graphite in next two weeks.
Interacting with the Media, after inaugurating the mining pavilion “Connecting Beyond Mining” at the India International Trade Fair 2023 (IITF), here today, the secretary said that for mining and processing of critical minerals indigenous technology will be explored.
Recently the Government has identified a list of critical minerals including new age minerals like Lithium, Cobalt and Titanium, important for meeting the modern needs of cutting-edge technology sectors like electronics, telecom, transport and defence. In recent years, the Government has introduced important reforms to open the mining sector for private participation and in particular mineral exploration. Today, there are many accredited private exploration agencies empanelled to step up the pace of exploration in the country.
To create awareness among the general public about the path breaking reforms underway in the mining and mineral sector, the Ministry of Mines is showcasing a state-of- the-art mining pavilion at IITF, Pragati Maidan from 14-27 November 2023.