Rajasthan to become 1st state to auction major mineral blocks after taking necessary permissions
Rajasthan is leading the way in India’s mining sector, gearing up to auction major mineral blocks as the first state with all key permissions already in place. This smart move promises to speed up mining operations, attract more investments, and create jobs across the region.
The state’s Department of Mines and Geology has kicked off preparations to get these big mineral blocks up and running. Auctions for these “pre-embedded” blocks—meaning all approvals are sorted beforehand—could start any day now. The Rajasthan State Mineral Exploration Trust, or RSMET, is handling the approvals to make everything smooth and efficient.
Other Indian states are watching closely and planning to jump on board soon.
T. Ravikant, Rajasthan’s Principal Secretary for Mines and Petroleum, explained the push: “We’ve secured the needed permissions for select major mineral blocks and are ready to auction them. Right now, it takes two-and-a-half to three years to get auctioned mines operational in most states, including ours. That slows down investments, jobs, and revenue. Pre-embedded permissions fix those delays.”
The change comes from recent updates to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act by India’s Union Ministry of Mines. The ministry urged states to pick five mineral blocks each, grab all clearances upfront—like from the forest department, environmental authorities, and revenue offices for grazing lands—and then auction them for quicker starts.
Rajasthan tapped RSMET as the project monitoring unit to oversee the process and run seamless online auctions. Pre-embeddedness covers everything from geological surveys and block boundaries to high-tech DGPS mapping, all of which RSMET has already wrapped up for these blocks.
With just a few final approvals left, the state expects to hold auctions shortly. Once winners get their letters of intent, mining can ramp up right away. This will strengthen Rajasthan’s mineral supply chain and give a big lift to the local economy through fresh investments and employment opportunities in mining.
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