SRINAGAR: India is not dependent on China for accessing rare earth minerals, the Union government informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, outlining ongoing efforts to build a domestic rare earth value chain for strategic and industrial use.
In a written reply to an unstarred question, the Department of Atomic Energy said India’s principal source of rare earth elements is Beach Sand Minerals (BSM), in which the mineral monazite occurs naturally. Monazite, a phosphate mineral containing rare earth elements along with uranium and thorium, is available domestically, and access to these resources does not rely on imports from China, the government said.
The Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, Jitendra Singh, said that IREL (India) Limited, a public sector undertaking under the Department of Atomic Energy, is engaged in the production of rare earth elements in the form of high-purity rare earth oxides from monazite mined in India. IREL operates integrated mining and mineral sand processing facilities at three locations and has dedicated facilities for extraction and refining of rare earths.
The government said several steps have been initiated to develop a full domestic rare earth value chain. For strategic applications, a Rare Earth Permanent Magnet plant has been operationalised at Visakhapatnam for the production of samarium cobalt magnets, which are used in defence and other high-performance applications.
In addition, IREL has established mini plants at the Rare Earth and Titanium Theme Park in Bhopal for the production of lanthanum, cerium and neodymium metals as part of value chain development. A rare earth element recycling plant has also been set up at the same facility to recover magnetic rare earth elements from end-of-life magnets.
The government further informed Parliament that the Union Cabinet, on November 26, 2025, approved a scheme to promote manufacturing of sintered rare earth permanent magnets (REPM) in the country, with a total financial outlay of Rs 7,280 crore. The scheme aims to establish 6,000 metric tonnes per annum of integrated REPM manufacturing capacity through global competitive bidding.
Under the scheme, five beneficiaries are envisaged to be selected through a transparent least-cost system, involving separate technical and financial bids. The incentive structure includes Rs 6,450 crore as sales-linked incentive and Rs 750 crore as capital subsidy during the scheme period.
The government said the initiative is intended to reduce import dependence in critical sectors such as electric mobility, renewable energy, electronics and defence, while also supporting employment generation and strengthening domestic manufacturing value chains.
