New Delhi: TEXMiN, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, and MaxelS Tekventures Pvt Ltd inaugurated the TEXMiN–MaxelS Center of Excellence for Critical Minerals & Digital Mineralogy in Nagpur on Tuesday. The inauguration was held at the MaxelS Tekventures facility in Hingna MIDC.
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TEXMiN is the Technology Translation Research Park (TTRP) established by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), at IIT (ISM) Dhanbad. MaxelS Tekventures is a Nagpur-based start-up incubated under TEXMiN.
Dr Hemant Sharad Pande, Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) of Western Coalfields Limited (WCL), attended as chief guest. Also present were Prof Dheeraj Kumar, Director, TEXMiN, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad; Dr Anupam Agnihotri, Advisory Director (Technical), MaxelS Tekventures and former Director, JNARDDC; Suraj Prakash, CEO, TEXMiN; and Muhammed Danish, CBDO, TEXMiN. Agnihotri delivered the inaugural address.
According to the statement, Maharashtra holds roughly 41 percent of India's rare earth element (REE) resources. It said Nagpur sits within the Vidarbha mining and coal belt, and listed WCL, the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), MOIL, JNARDDC, DGMS and the Directorate of Geology & Mining, Government of Maharashtra, as organisations based there.
Prof Sukumar Mishra, Director, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and Chairman, Hub Governing Board, TEXMiN, said, "The inauguration of the TEXMiN–MaxelS Center of Excellence marks an important milestone in extending our institutional strength into Maharashtra, a state with deep-rooted mining expertise and a significant share of India's rare earth resources. Nagpur's ecosystem of organisations working in mining and minerals makes it an ideal base for this collaboration. Through this Center, we look forward to advancing research, technology development, and skilled talent that contribute meaningfully to India's critical minerals mission and its broader goal of self-reliance in strategic resources."
Prof Dheeraj Kumar, Head, CoRE-MiN (NCMM-CoE) and Director, TEXMiN, said, "Nagpur's mining and mineral ecosystem, anchored by organisations like WCL, MOIL, IBM, and JNARDDC, makes it a natural home for this Center of Excellence. Through our partnership with MaxelS, we aim to bring together exploration, digital mineralogy, and technology development under one roof, translating research into real capability on the ground. This collaboration reflects TEXMiN's continued commitment to building indigenous solutions in critical minerals and rare earth elements that support India's larger mineral security and self-reliance goals."
Madhu Nair, CEO, MaxelS Tekventures Pvt Ltd, said, "For MaxelS, this Center of Excellence is a natural extension of our journey with TEXMiN, from incubation to building indigenous technology for India's critical minerals sector. Nagpur gives us access to a strong mining and mineral ecosystem, and this collaboration lets us bring exploration, digital mineralogy, and automation capabilities together under one platform. We're excited to work alongside TEXMiN and our partners to build solutions that support India's mineral security and self-reliance goals, right here in Maharashtra."
The statement said the Center covers critical mineral exploration and mapping, extraction technology development, digital mineralogy and AI-based analytics, advanced testing and analytical facilities, IoT, robotics and mine automation, startup incubation and industry collaboration, and training and capacity building.
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TEXMiN is a Section 8 company set up under the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS). It works on solutions for mineral exploration and mining using technologies including AI/ML, IoT, blockchain, drones, robotics, digital twins and satellite imagery.