UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Record 30 Mineral Blocks Operationalised in FY 2025–26

Q1. By the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2023, how many critical and strategic minerals were inserted in Part D of Schedule-I of the MMDR Act, 1957, over which the Central Government was given exclusive auctioning power?

  • A. 12
  • B. 24
  • C. 30
  • D. 6

Q2. The principle of allocating mineral concessions only through auction (auction-only allocation) was first introduced into the MMDR framework by which amendment?

  • A. MMDR Amendment Act, 2015
  • B. MMDR Amendment Act, 2021
  • C. MMDR Amendment Act, 2023
  • D. The original MMDR Act, 1957

Q3. Under the National Critical Mineral Mission, which organisation has been entrusted with the largest mandate of exploration projects - a target of 1,200 projects between 2024-25 and 2030-31?

  • A. Geological Survey of India
  • B. Mineral Exploration and Consultancy Limited
  • C. Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL)
  • D. Indian Bureau of Mines

Q4. The National Critical Mineral Mission, approved by the Union Cabinet with an outlay of Rs.34,300 crore over seven years, is implemented under which Union Ministry?

  • A. Ministry of Mines
  • B. Ministry of Coal
  • C. Ministry of Steel
  • D. Ministry of Earth Sciences

Q5. After the 2023 amendment delisted six minerals such as lithium and niobium from the atomic-minerals list, the exclusive power to auction the mining concessions for these critical minerals now vests with which authority?

  • A. The Central Government (Ministry of Mines)
  • B. The Department of Atomic Energy
  • C. The respective State Governments
  • D. The Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research

Q6. Funds collected under the District Mineral Foundation are channelled primarily for the implementation of which flagship welfare scheme for mining-affected areas?

  • A. Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana
  • B. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana
  • C. Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana
  • D. Aspirational Districts Programme

Q7. The National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET) was established under which section of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957?

  • A. Section 9C
  • B. Section 9B
  • C. Section 9A
  • D. Section 18

Q8. Which financial year recorded the highest-ever number of mineral block auctions in a single year - the first time the 200-block mark was crossed, with 212 blocks auctioned?

  • A. FY 2025-26
  • B. FY 2024-25
  • C. FY 2023-24
  • D. FY 2022-23

Q9. In the context of the Ministry of Mines' 2025 reform to fast-track auctioned blocks, what do the prescribed 'intermediate timelines' refer to?

  • A. Fixed clearance milestones between the grant of a block at auction and the start of production
  • B. The minimum gap that must elapse between two successive auction tranches of the same mineral
  • C. The validity period of an exploration licence before it lapses
  • D. The interval after which the national critical minerals list must be revised

Q10. Under the MMDR Act, 1957, the power to notify or declare a particular mineral as a 'minor mineral' rests with which authority?

  • A. The Central Government
  • B. The concerned State Government
  • C. The Indian Bureau of Mines
  • D. The Geological Survey of India

Q11. In India's mineral policy framework, the term 'critical mineral' is best defined as a mineral that is:

  • A. Essential for economic development and national security, with a high risk of supply-chain disruption
  • B. Found only in offshore and deep-seabed deposits within India's Exclusive Economic Zone
  • C. Any mineral whose royalty rate is fixed exclusively by the State Government concerned
  • D. A mineral classified as radioactive and reserved solely for the Department of Atomic Energy