NITI Aayog, TEXMiN join hands to strengthen India’s critical minerals ecosystem

New Delhi: NITI Aayog and TEXMiN (Technology Translation Research Park), an initiative of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) at IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, have signed a Joint Statement of Intent (SoI) to strengthen India's critical and strategic minerals ecosystem.

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The collaboration aims to promote indigenous technological capabilities, research and innovation, and the development of resilient and sustainable critical mineral value chains in line with the objectives of the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) and the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Viksit Bharat 2047.

The SoI was signed during the visit of NITI Aayog Member Prof. Gobardhan Das to IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, where he inaugurated the National Symposium on Critical Minerals and Rare Earths (CMRE 2026) on October 31. The symposium was organised as part of the 45th Annual National Conference of the Indian Council of Chemists.

Addressing the symposium, Prof. Das highlighted the strategic importance of critical minerals for national security and technological self-reliance. He emphasised the need to develop an integrated value chain covering exploration, processing, refining, advanced materials and recycling, moving beyond a mine-centric approach.

He also highlighted the potential of recovering critical minerals from secondary resources such as coal fly ash, red mud, mine tailings and electronic waste, stressing the importance of translating research outcomes into commercially viable technologies.

The collaboration between NITI Aayog and TEXMiN will focus on four key areas: collaborative research and technology development; technical and strategic studies; policy and institutional support; and capacity building and knowledge exchange.

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The partnership is expected to strengthen coordination among government agencies, academic institutions, research organisations and industry, while accelerating technology development and commercialisation in the critical minerals sector.

The initiative is aimed at supporting India's efforts to build resilient critical mineral supply chains and reduce strategic vulnerabilities through indigenous research, innovation and sustainable resource utilisation.

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