The budget 2026-2027 had come up with a proposal to establish a rare earth corridor, a comprehensive region of mineral-rich states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha. These states have huge deposits of rare earth minerals like Monazite (rich in Thorium and Cerium), Ilmenite, Rutile, Zircon, and Xenotime. These are crucial elements in building electric vehicles, electronics, and renewable energy resources.
India currently contains 13.15 million tonnes of monazite deposits containing approximately 7.23 million tonnes of rare-earth oxides. These mineral resources are crucial in building magnets used in electric vehicles, electronic gadgets like mobile phones and laptops, and renewable energy sources like Wind turbine and nuclear power plants, in order to progress towards a sustainable future.
At present, India purchases around 60-80% of its current rare earth magnets from China, with India’s consumption of electronics products expected to double by the year 2030. This move by the union government focuses on reducing the dependency on China and aiming to produce resources at home, boosting self-reliance.
India has struck a deal with Argentina, Mozambique, the Ivory Coast, Peru, Zimbabwe, and Zambia for the rare earth elements (REE) to negate the over-dependency on China. The government has stated that this move is in alignment to the net zero carbon emission by the year 2070.
