China's Critical Minerals Dominance: A Strategic Threat to India and Japan?
UPSC-standard MCQs with explanations, trap analysis, and approach guide. Answer after the test — not before.
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Article summary
Union Minister Piyush Goyal warned in an NDTV interview that China's dominance over critical minerals poses a strategic threat to India and Japan, citing the COVID-19 pandemic — when China's border closures disrupted global supply chains — as a concrete precedent for mineral-linked coercion. Critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, graphite, and rare earth elements are foundational inputs for electric vehicles, semiconductors, clean energy systems, and advanced defence platforms. China controls approximately 87% of global rare earth processing and 60% of lithium processing (IEA, 2023), giving it asymmetric leverage over technology-dependent economies including India. India has responded through the Critical Minerals Mission, KABIL's overseas acquisition mandate, and membership of the US-led Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), while also discovering significant domestic lithium reserves in Jammu & Kashmir (5.9 million tonnes, GSI 2023). For UPSC aspirants, this topic is a high-value intersection of GS3 economic security, GS2 international relations, and the emerging theme of supply chain resilience and friend-shoring.
What this tests
Sample questions — answers revealed after test
Q1. KABIL (Khanij Bidesh India Ltd), India's nodal agency for acquiring critical mineral assets abroad, is a joint venture of which of the following entities?
Q2. A policy analyst is evaluating the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) as a strategic instrument for India. Which of the following characterisations of the MSP is INCORRECT?
Q3. Consider the following statements regarding China's dominance in critical minerals and India's strategic response: 1. China's structural advantage in critical minerals lies primarily in its share of global mining output rather than its control over processing and refining capacity. 2. The Geological Survey of India (GSI) estimated in 2023 that lithium reserves in the Reasi district of Jammu & Kashmir amount to approximately 5.9 million tonnes. 3. India's Ministry of Mines identified 30 critical minerals in its 2023 list, which was developed independently of any external framework and is unique to India's industrial requirements. 4. China imposed export controls on gallium and germanium in August 2023, marking the first instance of critical mineral supply chains being explicitly used as a geopolitical instrument. Which of the statements given above are correct?