New Delhi. The government has cancelled the auction of three important mineral blocks including lithium mine in Jammu and Kashmir under the third phase of sale of mines. This auction was cancelled due to less than the required number of bidders. The purpose of auctioning these mineral blocks is the government’s move towards clean alternatives and achieving self-sufficiency in mineral supply.
These three blocks include Salal-Hamna Lithium, Titanium and Bauxite (Aluminous Laterite) Block in Jammu and Kashmir, Muskania-Gareyatola-Barwari Potash Block in Jharkhand and Kurunjakulam Graphite Block in Tamil Nadu.
Bids were lower than expected
According to a notice issued by the Ministry of Mines, the auction was cancelled as “the required number of bids were not received as per the Mineral Auction Rules”. The ministry had put seven critical mineral blocks up for sale in the third round of auction on March 14. These included blocks that had received less than three bids in the first round.
Blocks are rich in minerals
These seven blocks pertain to critical minerals such as glauconite, graphite, nickel, PGE, potash, lithium and titanium and are spread across Bihar, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Last month, the government cancelled the auction of 14 blocks of critical minerals that were launched in the second phase. In the first phase of the sale, the Centre had cancelled the auction of 13 of the 20 blocks put up for sale due to lukewarm response.
The Centre last month launched the fourth round of auction of critical and strategic mineral blocks, offering 21 mines in several states, including Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
Of these 21 blocks, 11 are new, spread across Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. These blocks contain a variety of minerals including graphite, glauconite, phosphorite, potash, nickel, PGE, phosphate and rare earth elements (REE).
Tags: Bjp government, Business news
FIRST PUBLISHED : July 28, 2024, 14:55 IST
