Critical Minerals and Supply-Chain Security
Critical minerals are raw materials (e.g., lithium, cobalt, rare earth elements, graphite) that are economically essential, especially for clean energy, electronics, and defence technologies, but face high supply-chain concentration or disruption risk. A Ministry of Mines expert committee (November 2022) identified 30 critical minerals for India, of which 24 were placed under Part D of the First Schedule of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, giving the Central Government exclusive authority to auction their mining leases.
- India's National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) was approved by the Union Cabinet in 2025 with an outlay of approximately ₹34,300 crore over seven years, covering exploration, mining, beneficiation, processing, and recycling.
- KABIL (Khanij Bidesh India Limited), a joint venture of three public-sector undertakings under the Ministry of Mines, has secured lithium exploration/mining rights in Argentina's Catamarca province and has an MoU with Australia's Critical Minerals Office.
- A small number of countries (led by China) dominate global processing of rare-earth elements — commonly cited at over 90% of global rare-earth magnet processing capacity — creating chokepoints that can be used for export restrictions.
- This is the second consecutive BRICS summit (after Rio de Janeiro in 2025) at which India has raised concerns about critical-minerals and technology "weaponisation," reflecting a consistent policy position rather than a one-off statement.
● Tracked since September 13, 2026 · last seen September 14, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
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