Two more Centres of Excellence recognized under the National Critical Mineral Mission

• The Union Ministry of Mines has recognized two additional institutions —
  • Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, and
  • Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology (C-MET), Hyderabad —
    as Centres of Excellence (CoEs) under the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM).
• These two join seven previously recognized institutes, further strengthening India’s R&D ecosystem in critical minerals.
• Objective:
  The CoEs aim to develop, demonstrate, and deploy technologies using an end-to-end systems approach, focusing on raising Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) up to TRL 7/8, which correspond to pilot plant and pre-commercial demonstration stages.
• Role of Critical Minerals:
  Critical raw materials are essential for:
  • Clean energy and mobility transition (e.g., EV batteries, renewable energy systems)
  • Advanced technology sectors like electronics, defence, and space.
• Research Approach:
  Each CoE will function under a Hub-and-Spoke model, promoting collaboration among institutions to pool expertise and accelerate innovation in exploration, processing, and recycling of critical minerals.
• Outcome:
  The initiative will help build a self-reliant supply chain for strategic and emerging technologies, aligning with the goals of Atmanirbhar Bharat and energy transition.

Source: PIB