Phase IFoundation
Background
Overview
UPSC cares about critical minerals due to their strategic importance for India's economic growth, national security, and its commitment to a clean energy transition. Issues such as supply chain resilience, resource diplomacy, environmental impacts of mining, and technological advancements in exploration and processing are frequently examined.
Critical minerals are essential raw materials for modern technologies, clean energy transitions, and national security, characterized by high supply risk and significant economic importance. Their scarcity, concentrated global supply chains, and demand for advanced industries make them geopolitically significant.