New Delhi: The Centre is close to finalising its policy on stockpiling critical minerals and will announce it in about a month, Mines Secretary Keshav Chandra said at the India Mines and Minerals Conclave 2026. “We are on the verge of finalising the policy on stockpiling of critical minerals which will be announced in about a month’s time,” Chandra told reporters.
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He was speaking on the sidelines of the conclave, which was organised by industry body The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM).
The policy is expected to secure the supply of these minerals for strategic sectors such as defence, aerospace and energy. The government has already released a list of over 30 critical minerals. It drew up that list with the needs of defence, agriculture, energy, pharmaceuticals and telecom, among other sectors, in mind. Minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements are essential raw materials for clean energy technologies. Their uses are expanding across wind turbines, electricity networks, electric vehicles (EVs) and battery manufacturing.
The stockpiling policy is not the only measure in the works. According to Chandra, the government was also developing four dedicated critical minerals processing parks, one each in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. The aim, he said, was to fast-track value addition for key battery materials.
Kadam Sandeep Vasant, Joint Secretary-cum-Mission Head of the National Critical Mineral Mission, also spoke at the conclave. He stressed the importance of building a self-reliant and resilient critical minerals ecosystem in India. Such an ecosystem, he said, would support strategic sectors including electronics, defence, space research and nuclear energy. He also pointed to the Rs 1,500-crore incentive scheme for critical mineral recycling.
Earlier in the day, Chandra addressed the conference and spoke about the progress the sector had made through policy reforms. He said exploration needed to speed up and critical mineral capabilities needed to be strengthened. He also called for more recycling and beneficiation, and for the adoption of modern mining practices.
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Chandra said the sector had to rethink how it used its resources. “We have to look at innovative methods to make use of that wealth of information. Any country which has made spectacular progress is also utilising its wealth and infusing new technology, looking at the entire resource from a new perspective altogether,” he said.