Ministry of Mines to Launch Seventh Tranche of Auction of Critical and Strategic Minerals

• 7th Tranche of auction of Critical and Strategic Mineral Blocks launched by the Ministry of Mines on 23 March 2026, offering 19 blocks under Mining Lease (ML) and Composite Licence (CL).
• Anchored in the MMDR Amendment Act, 2023 which empowered the Central Government to auction 24 notified critical minerals.
• Critical to UPSC because it ties together energy transition, supply-chain security, federalism in mining, and Atmanirbhar Bharat in the mineral sector.