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2 Aug 2026ECONOMY3 questions

Ten Times by 2047: India's Critical Minerals Gap Is a Processing Problem, Not a Mining One

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Article summary

A Grant Thornton Bharat report released on 30 July 2026 projects that India's demand for critical minerals and rare earth elements could rise four to ten times by 2047, and warns that the country's advanced manufacturing ambitions could be constrained unless capability is built beyond mining. India's policy response is the National Critical Mineral Mission, launched in 2025, under which the Geological Survey of India is to conduct 1,200 exploration projects between 2024-25 and 2030-31. A Ministry of Mines committee constituted in November 2022 identified 30 critical minerals, of which 24 were placed in 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 and composite licences. The demand is driven by clean energy: silicon, tellurium, indium and gallium for solar photovoltaics, and dysprosium and neodymium for the permanent magnets in wind turbines and electric vehicles.

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recallTests whether you read the article and retained key facts.
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applicationTests whether you can apply the concept to a new scenario.
1Q
analysisTests whether you can reason across multiple related facts.
1Q

Sample questions — answers revealed after test

ECONOMYRecallEasy

Q1. What is the legal effect of placing a mineral in Part D of the First Schedule of the MMDR Act, 1957?

AIt prohibits mining of that mineral entirely
BIt gives the Central Government exclusive authority to auction mining leases and composite licences for that mineral
CIt reserves that mineral for public sector undertakings
DIt exempts that mineral from environmental clearance
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ECONOMYApplicationMedium

Q2. Why is the global chokepoint in critical minerals described as midstream rather than upstream?

ABecause rare earth ore deposits exist in only two or three countries worldwide
BBecause rare earth ores are geologically widespread, but separating individual rare earths requires many stages of solvent extraction, and that refining capacity is concentrated in very few countries
CBecause shipping minerals across oceans is the main bottleneck
DBecause demand for these minerals is falling
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ECONOMYAnalysisHard

Q3. Consider the following statements: 1. Under the National Critical Mineral Mission launched in 2025, the Geological Survey of India is to conduct 1,200 exploration projects between 2024-25 and 2030-31. 2. Neodymium and dysprosium are critical chiefly for their use in high-strength permanent magnets in wind turbine generators and electric vehicle motors. 3. A Grant Thornton Bharat projection of four-to-ten-times demand growth by 2047 is precise enough to size domestic processing capacity directly. Which of the statements given above are correct?

A1 and 2 only
B2 and 3 only
C1 and 3 only
D1, 2 and 3
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