President Droupadi Murmu said India can achieve its target of becoming a developed nation by becoming self-reliant in the production of rare earth elements.
Murmu was speaking at the National Geoscience Awards 2024 on Friday, where the President talked about the current geopolitical situation in the world, seemingly referring to US’ trade war and China’s curbs on the exports of rare earth magnets that are used in electric vehicles, electronics, smartphones, and wind turbines among other products.
"Seeing the current geopolitical situation, it is very important that India becomes self-reliant in production of rare earth elements," she said, adding that this would help ensure the security of the country.
India has rare earth sources, but lacks the production facilities to process them. These elements are therefore not rare because their availability is scarce, but the process to identify these elements is very complicated, said the President.
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In the age of artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and clean energy technology, the development of indigenous techniques will help simplify the complicated process of producing rare earths, President Murmu said.
Rare Earth Elements (REEs) are a group of 17 chemically similar metallic elements that are essential for modern technologies, including smartphones, electric vehicles, and wind turbines.
The mines ministry, she added, is committed to attaining sustainability and innovation by promoting AI machine-learning and drone-based surveys. The focus is also being laid on recovery of valuable elements from mine tailings.
With climate change wreaking havoc this year via cloudbursts and landslides in several parts of the country, it is now more important than ever before to get information about such natural disasters on time, the President said.
"It is my appeal to the geoscientist community to pay more attention on the research of natural calamities like flood, landslide, earthquake, and tsunami," she implored, and said geoscientists should develop technologies that can help alert the common man about these natural calamities before they strike.
Instituted in 1966 by the mines ministry, the National Geoscience Awards (known as the National Mineral Awards until 2009) are among the country's oldest and most prestigious honours in the field of geosciences.
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