4th Conference of Mining Ministers Ends in Goa; Focus on Exploration

The 4th Conference of Mining Ministers, a two-day meeting of the Union government and the States on the mining sector, came to a close in Goa, the Ministry of Mines said on 6 November 2026. The central message from New Delhi was that exploration for minerals must move faster, and that the Centre and the States have to do it together.

Main points from the Union Minister

G. Kishan Reddy, Union Minister of Coal and Mines, made the case for joint Centre-State effort to speed up exploration. He linked the urgency to the rising demand for critical minerals, the group of minerals needed for clean energy, electronics and advanced manufacturing. He also listed three other goals for the States:

• earning more revenue from mining,
• planning mines better, and
• closing exhausted mines properly through effective mine closure practices.

Other voices

Satish Chandra Dubey, Minister of State for Coal and Mines, asked the States to pool their efforts to push mining projects and help the country become self-reliant in minerals. Keshav Chandra, Secretary of the Ministry of Mines, said the ministry had noted the problems and ideas put forward by the States. He promised to tackle delays and procedural bottlenecks through closer coordination and quicker resolution.

States on the second day

The closing day was given over to the priorities for growth in the sector. Representatives of Rajasthan, Kerala, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh described their own experience, raised key issues and spoke about the challenges and opportunities they see.

Outcome

The meeting ended on a positive note. Participants renewed their commitment to stronger cooperation between the Centre and the States, to clearing the main hurdles and to quicker development of the mining sector in line with the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047.

Why it matters for exams

Mining needs both the Union and the States to act, so ministerial conferences of this kind are where their priorities are brought into line. Questions usually test the edition, the host State, the Union Minister and the theme of critical minerals.