New IIT (ISM) Dhanbad Centre to Drive Critical Minerals Innovation for Clean-Tech

India’s strategic push to secure critical mineral supply chains received a fresh boost as IIT (ISM) Dhanbad launched a dedicated Critical Minerals Centre under the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM). The initiative comes at a time when global competition for essential minerals is intensifying, while domestic demand is accelerating due to India’s rapid clean energy and manufacturing expansion.

The centre—named CoRE-MiN (Centre of Research Excellence in Mining and Innovation for Critical Materials)—has been established in partnership with TEXMiN, the institute’s DST-supported technology translation research park. It aims to strengthen India’s indigenous capabilities across the critical minerals value chain, spanning exploration, sustainable extraction, mineral processing, and technology innovation.

Critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, and rare earth elements are the backbone of emerging industries including renewable energy systems, battery storage, electric mobility, electronics, and defence manufacturing. As India scales solar, wind, EV adoption, and grid-scale storage, ensuring reliable access to these materials is becoming a strategic priority. The new centre is expected to support applied research and industry collaboration to reduce import dependence and improve long-term mineral security.

The inauguration was carried out by Union Minister for Coal and Mines, G. Kishan Reddy, who also unveiled a Virtual Reality Mine Simulator (VRMS) at IIT (ISM). The simulator is intended to improve workforce training and enhance safety standards using immersive learning tools.

With the creation of CoRE-MiN, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad is positioned to play a catalytic role in supporting India’s efforts to build resilient, self-reliant supply chains for the clean energy transition and advanced manufacturing.