Kumar Bahukhandi
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai addresses the eighth-tranche roadshow for the auction of critical and strategic mineral blocks at Mayfair Lake Resort in Nava Raipur on Monday, August 31, 2026-Photo Credit: channel24india.com via CG/DPR
Five of the 20 mineral blocks offered in the eighth auction tranche are in Chhattisgarh; Chief Minister launches E-Ret Sangwari and Tin portals and invites investment in processing, advanced manufacturing and recycling
Key Highlights
- Chhattisgarh has five blocks among the 20 critical and strategic mineral blocks offered across seven states.
- State seeks investment across exploration, extraction, processing, value addition, advanced manufacturing and recycling.
- CM Sai launches E-Ret Sangwari and Tin portals to improve transparency and extend benefits to citizens.
- CMDC signs MoUs with Indian Overseas Bank and Pandit Ravishankar Shukla University.
- State reports mineral revenue of nearly ₹16,700 crore in the previous financial year.
- Forty exploration projects and more than 2,800 kilometres of geological surveys completed in two-and-a-half years.
- India has successfully auctioned 56 of the 88 critical and strategic mineral blocks taken up so far.
Raipur : Chhattisgarh is preparing to move beyond mineral extraction and develop a complete value chain covering exploration, mining, processing, value addition, advanced manufacturing and recycling, Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said at a critical minerals roadshow in Nava Raipur on Monday, August 31, 2026.
Addressing the roadshow for the eighth tranche of auctions of critical and strategic mineral blocks at Mayfair Lake Resort, Sai said Chhattisgarh’s mineral wealth could attract major investments, facilitate the establishment of new industries and create large-scale employment opportunities for young people.
“Our objective is not merely to extract minerals from the earth. We want the entire mineral value chain—from exploration and extraction to processing, value addition, advanced manufacturing and recycling—to be developed within Chhattisgarh,” Sai said.
The roadshow was organised by the Union Ministry of Mines. Twenty mineral blocks located across seven states are included in the eighth auction tranche, five of which are in Chhattisgarh.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai inaugurates the eighth-tranche roadshow for the auction of critical and strategic mineral blocks by lighting the ceremonial lamp at Mayfair Lake Resort in Nava Raipur on Monday, August 31, 2026. Union Minister of State for Coal and Mines Satish Chandra Dubey (left) and Union Minister of State Tokhan Sahu (right) are also seen-Photo Credit: channel24india.com via CG/DPR
Sai urged investors to participate actively, saying the auctions offered opportunities extending far beyond the acquisition of mining blocks.
“This is an opportunity to give a new direction to the economies of Chhattisgarh and India through exploration, processing, innovation, value addition and new industries,” he said.
The Chief Minister described critical and strategic minerals as essential to India’s economic progress, technological self-reliance and national security. Their dependable availability, he said, is becoming increasingly important for defence production, artificial intelligence, clean energy, electric mobility, electronics, digital technology and advanced manufacturing.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai receives a commemorative memento from Chhattisgarh Mineral Resources Secretary P Dayanand during the eighth-tranche roadshow for the auction of critical and strategic mineral blocks at Mayfair Lake Resort in Nava Raipur on Monday, August 31, 2026-Photo Credit:channel24india.com via CG/DPR
Lithium, graphite, rare-earth elements, vanadium, nickel and chromium are among the minerals required for emerging sectors such as semiconductors, batteries and renewable-energy equipment.
Sai said global economic and geopolitical developments had prompted major economies to secure strategic resources and supply chains. India’s self-reliance in critical minerals, therefore, represented both an economic requirement and a strategic necessity.
Referring to the National Critical Mineral Mission, Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat, Sai said the country was strengthening exploration, processing and mineral-based industrial development.
He also referred to the growing importance of strategically significant minerals in modern defence equipment and said a secure and continuous supply was necessary for building a strong, self-reliant defence industry.
Chhattisgarh has identified potential deposits of lithium and rare-earth elements in Katghora and Bastar; graphite, vanadium and gallium in Balrampur; phosphorite in Balod; and nickel, chromium and glauconite in Mahasamund.
Sai said the state did not want minerals to be transported elsewhere immediately after extraction. Processing, value addition and associated manufacturing should take place within Chhattisgarh so that local communities and the state economy receive a greater share of the economic benefits generated by natural resources.
Chhattisgarh Chief Secretary Vikas Sheel (left) receives a commemorative memento from Rajat Bansal, Special Secretary to the Chief Minister, Commissioner of Public Relations, Director of Geology and Mining, and Managing Director of CMDC, during the critical and strategic mineral blocks auction roadshow at Nava Raipur on Monday, August 31, 2026-Photo Credit:channel24india.com via CG/DPR
The state is developing an artificial intelligence-based data centre park and an electronics manufacturing cluster in Nava Raipur, along with an electronic manufacturing cluster in Rajnandgaon. Proximity to critical mineral resources could provide these emerging industries with a competitive advantage, he said.
Sai said Chhattisgarh’s new industrial policy offered incentives for emerging and future-oriented industries. The Ease of Doing Business legislation and One Click Single Window System 2.0 had simplified procedures for low- and medium-risk industries and made approvals and no-objection certificates easier to obtain.
Investment incentives include capital assistance, concessions in stamp duty and electricity duty, interest subsidies and employment-linked support.
Mineral revenue in Chhattisgarh stood at about ₹400 crore when the state was formed. It had reached approximately ₹12,000 crore two-and-a-half years ago and has now crossed ₹16,000 crore, the Chief Minister said.
Revenue generated from mineral resources is being used for development and public welfare. Through District Mineral Foundation funds, work is being undertaken in mining-affected areas to improve education, healthcare, drinking water and other essential services.
Digital Portals, Exploration and New Partnerships
Sai launched the E-Ret Sangwari portal, intended to make the supply of sand at concessional rates to beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana more accessible and transparent.
He also launched a Tin portal designed to help tribal families associated with tin collection in the Dantewada region obtain fair prices while improving transparency within the system.
The Chhattisgarh Mineral Development Corporation signed an MoU with Indian Overseas Bank to strengthen financial cooperation. A second MoU was signed between CMDC and Pandit Ravishankar Shukla University for training in corundum cutting and polishing.
The agreements are expected to support financing, skills development, mineral value addition and investment.
A publication on minor minerals was released during the programme, while the process for issuing notices inviting tenders for three limestone mining lease blocks was also taken forward.
Union Minister of State for Coal and Mines Satish Chandra Dubey said self-reliance in critical and strategic minerals was vital to India’s economic and strategic strength.
He said these minerals were used in products ranging from vehicles, inverters and e-rickshaws to ships and sophisticated defence equipment. He invited investors, young entrepreneurs and start-ups to explore opportunities in the sector.
Dubey said the Centre’s objective was not confined to mineral exploitation but included sustainable and responsible mining, environmental protection and safeguarding the interests of local communities.
Union Minister of State Tokhan Sahu said Chhattisgarh had a major opportunity to convert its mineral wealth and industrial base into new economic possibilities.
He said the success of mineral block auctions should not be measured merely by allocation. Their real impact would be visible through exploration, investment, processing facilities, technological development, value addition and employment.
Planned development of housing, transport, drinking water, healthcare and education should accompany mining and industrial investment, Sahu added.
Chief Secretary Vikas Sheel said the state was working to facilitate mineral investment and downstream industries. Forty-three services had been notified under a risk-rated approach, with self-declaration proposed for low- and medium-risk activities and approval-based procedures for high-risk activities.
The state government was providing investors with assistance in securing environmental, forest, land acquisition and other necessary clearances. Mineral blocks were now being auctioned after land scheduling so that bidders could receive clearer information about land, forest areas and related procedures in advance.
Sheel urged companies to invest not only in mines but across the mineral value chain and develop business models that increased the participation of local communities.
Union Mines Secretary Keshav Chandra said reliable supplies of critical and strategic minerals were essential as India sought to emerge as a global manufacturing centre and advance towards its clean-energy targets.
The Centre has initiated auction proceedings for 88 critical and strategic mineral blocks since receiving the authority to conduct such auctions. Fifty-six have been auctioned successfully, he said.
India’s first auction of a lithium-bearing mineral block involved the Katghora lithium and rare-earth elements block in Chhattisgarh.
Officials exchange an MoU during the critical and strategic mineral blocks auction roadshow in the presence of Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai at Nava Raipur on Monday, August 31, 2026. CMDC signed agreements with Indian Overseas Bank and Pandit Ravishankar Shukla University to strengthen financial cooperation, skills development and mineral value addition-Photo Credit:channel24india.com via CG/DPR
Reforms including milestone-based compliance, time-bound clearances, a unified mining portal and insurance security bonds have been introduced to make auctions more transparent, efficient and investor-friendly.
Mineral Resources Secretary P Dayanand said Chhattisgarh was strengthening scientific surveys, geological data collection and mapping in coordination with the Geological Survey of India and other institutions.
The government’s objective, he said, was to convert promising mineral areas into productive mines while simultaneously promoting mineral-based industries, local employment, technology and value addition.
Director of Geology and Mining and CMDC Managing Director Rajat Bansal said nearly ₹16,700 crore in mineral revenue was received during the previous financial year, representing about 98 per cent of the target and year-on-year growth of approximately 14 per cent.
Chhattisgarh has begun 40 exploration projects and completed more than 2,800 kilometres of geological surveys over the past two-and-a-half years.
Sixty-five mineral blocks have been auctioned in the state, carrying estimated potential revenue of about ₹4 lakh crore, Bansal said.
Exploration and auction activity is progressing in areas associated with lithium in Katghora, graphite, vanadium and gallium in Balrampur and the Bastar tin belt. The state also holds prospects for gold, tungsten, copper, lead-zinc and diamonds.
Digital systems such as Khanij Online 2.0, DMF 2.0 and electronic auctions are being used to strengthen transparency and accountability. Drone surveys are also being employed to monitor mines and minor minerals.
Sai said the roadshow could lay a strong foundation for investment, technological cooperation and new partnerships, helping establish Chhattisgarh as an important centre in India’s critical mineral value chain.
