PMO wants more input on ₹1,350cr rare earth magnets plan
The Prime Minister's Office wants more input on a ₹1,350 crore plan to boost India's production of heavy rare earth magnets—key parts used in electric vehicles and defense tech.
Right now, India mostly imports these from China.
The Ministry of Heavy Industry will update the scheme based on what industry players suggest, aiming to build a local supply chain with two manufacturers over seven years.
Companies like Sona Comstar already interested
After a high-level meeting, the PMO made it clear that all industry concerns need to be sorted before anything is finalized.
Even though India has plenty of rare earth reserves, we only produced 2,900 tons in 2024 while importing a whopping 53,000 tons.
Companies like Sona Comstar and Midwest Advanced Materials are already interested—Midwest hopes to make 500 tons by the end of 2025.
The big goal: cut down on imports and give domestic manufacturing a real push.