PIB Summaries 04 February 2026

Content

• Paradip Port Authority Wins First Prize at Swachhata Pakhwada Awards 2025
• India’s Rare Earth Strategy: Manufacturing, Corridors, and Global Integration

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Paradip Port Authority Wins First Prize at Swachhata Pakhwada Awards 2025

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Why in News ?

• Paradip Port Authority (PPA) secured First Prize in Swachhata Pakhwada Awards 2025 by MoPSW, highlighting cleanliness performance, sustainability actions, and community participation within India’s port-led development and governance reforms.
• Recognition signifies mainstreaming of Swachh Bharat principles into maritime institutions, where sanitation, environmental stewardship, and citizen engagement are evaluated as core indicators of administrative performance and public accountability.

Paradip Port – Profile

Port Significance

• Paradip Port, located in Odisha on Bay of Bengal, is a major port under Major Port Authorities Act 2021, handling bulk cargo like coal, iron ore, fertilizers, supporting energy and industrial supply chains.

Swachhata Pakhwada Framework

Policy Basis

• Swachhata Pakhwada, launched in 2016, is a rotational fortnight campaign across ministries promoting sanitation, waste management, and behavioral change, extending Swachh Bharat Mission into government institutions and PSUs.

Governance / Administrative Dimensions

Performance Governance

• Award system promotes result-based governance, ranking institutions on cleanliness drives, plantation, waste reuse, citizen outreach, fostering competition, transparency, and accountability among autonomous port authorities.

Policy Convergence

• Demonstrates convergence of Sagarmala, Swachh Bharat Mission, and LiFE, embedding sanitation and sustainability into logistics modernization, reflecting whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches.

Green Initiatives

Plantation & Climate Value

• 40,000 saplings planted under Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam 2.0 improved coastal green cover, supporting carbon sequestration, biodiversity support, and climate resilience against cyclones and coastal degradation.

Circular Economy

• Anti–single-use plastic campaigns, Scrap-to-Structure, Waste-to-Wealth exhibitions promote resource efficiency and circular economy, aligning with SDG 12 and sustainable consumption under Mission LiFE.

Labour Dignity

Safai Mitra Welfare

• Safai Mitra Suraksha included medical check-ups, safety focus, public recognition, reinforcing dignity of labour and aligning with Article 21 and Directive Principles on humane working conditions.

Behavioral Change

• Jan Bhagidari activities—rallies, cyclothons, school drives—cultivate citizen ownership of sanitation, transforming cleanliness from compliance to civic culture, echoing Gandhian ethics of public hygiene.

Efficiency Gains

Logistics Impact

• Cleaner ports reduce pollution, disease risk, and operational disruptions, improving vessel turnaround time and productivity, indirectly strengthening India’s logistics competitiveness and trade facilitation.

ESG Advantage

• Sustainability branding supports ESG compliance, increasingly important for global investors and shipping companies, integrating environmental performance into India’s port-led industrialization and maritime diplomacy.

Data & Evidence

Measurable Outcomes

• 40,000 saplings, multi-location drives, plastic awareness campaigns provide measurable sustainability indicators, enabling benchmarking, ESG reporting, and evidence-based environmental governance in port ecosystems.

National Context

• Swachh Bharat Mission achieved 100% declared rural sanitation coverage, and institutional campaigns like Swachhata Pakhwada deepen sanitation culture beyond households into economic and administrative domains.

Structural Issues

Sustainability Risks

• Campaign-mode cleanliness risks short-termism without scientific waste processing, segregation infrastructure, and continuous monitoring, limiting durable environmental gains in port and coastal urban ecosystems.

Labour Concerns

• Safai Mitras still face contractualization, hazardous exposure, limited mechanization, indicating need for systemic labour reforms, social security coverage, and technology-driven sanitation solutions.

Way Forward

Green Port Systems

• Introduce Green Port Certification, third-party environmental audits, and real-time waste tracking, ensuring year-round compliance and alignment with global sustainable port standards.

Worker Welfare

• Expand mechanization, insurance, skilling, and formal social security for sanitation workers, ensuring dignity, safety, and long-term welfare beyond symbolic recognition.

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India’s Rare Earth Strategy: Manufacturing, Corridors, and Global Integration

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Why in News ?

• Union Budget 2026–27 announced Dedicated Rare Earth Corridors in Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu alongside ₹7,280 crore REPM Scheme, signalling strategic push for critical minerals self-reliance.
• Move integrates mining, processing, R&D, and manufacturing for Rare Earth Permanent Magnets (REPMs), aligning industrial policy with Atmanirbhar Bharat, Net Zero 2070, and Viksit Bharat @2047 priorities.

Rare Earths – Basics

Scientific Profile

• Rare Earth Elements (17 elements) include lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium, valued for magnetic, luminescent, catalytic properties, forming backbone of advanced manufacturing and clean energy technologies.

REPM Significance

• Rare Earth Permanent Magnets offer high magnetic strength, thermal stability, miniaturization benefits, making them indispensable for EV motors, wind turbines, aerospace, defence electronics, and precision sensors.

India’s Geological Advantage

Monazite & REO Base

• India holds 13.15 million tonnes monazite containing 7.23 million tonnes REO, largely in coastal sands, providing strong raw material base for downstream rare earth industries.

Exploration Evidence

• Geological Survey of India identified 482.6 million tonnes rare-earth ore across 34 projects, while 1.29 million tonnes in-situ REO found in Gujarat–Rajasthan hard-rock formations.

Policy Architecture

Legislative Support

• MMDR Act Amendment 2023 created critical minerals list, opened exploration to private players, improving regulatory clarity, investment climate, and accelerating domestic critical mineral development.

Mission Mode Approach

• National Critical Minerals Mission (2025) ensures secure, sustainable supply chains, linking exploration, processing, recycling, and strategic partnerships for long-term mineral security.

Manufacturing Push

Scheme Design

• ₹7,280 crore REPM scheme targets 6,000 MTPA capacity, offers ₹6,450 crore sales-linked incentives and ₹750 crore capital subsidy, promoting integrated value chains from oxides to magnets.

Import Substitution

• India imported 60–80% by value, 85–90% by quantity of magnets (2022–25), mainly from China, exposing supply chain vulnerability and forex outflows.

National Security Relevance

Defence Applications

• REPMs power missile guidance, radars, avionics, sensors, making domestic supply vital for strategic autonomy, reducing exposure to geopolitical supply disruptions and technology denial regimes.

Energy Transition

• EVs and wind turbines rely on REPMs; domestic production supports Net Zero 2070, energy security, and reduced fossil fuel dependence through accelerated renewable deployment.

International Partnerships

Bilateral Outreach

• Agreements with Australia, Argentina, Zambia, Mozambique, Peru, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Côte d’Ivoire diversify mineral sourcing, ensuring long-term access to strategic reserves.

Multilateral Platforms

• Participation in Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) and IPEF strengthens technology cooperation, responsible mining practices, and resilient global critical mineral supply chains.

KABIL’s Role

• Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL)—JV of NALCO, HCL, MECL—acquires overseas assets; lithium block agreement in Argentina marks strategic asset acquisition for value chain security.

Role of IREL

Strategic PSU

• IREL (India) Limited, under Department of Atomic Energy, processes 10 lakh TPA beach sand minerals, operates rare earth extraction in Odisha and refining unit in Kerala.

Structural Constraints

Processing Bottlenecks

• Rare earth separation is technology-intensive, environmentally sensitive, requiring high capital, skilled manpower, and strict waste management, slowing domestic value-addition.

Market Risks

• Global rare earth markets face price volatility and Chinese dominance, making early-stage Indian producers vulnerable without long-term procurement guarantees and industrial demand aggregation.

Way Forward

Technology & R&D

• Invest in indigenous separation technologies, recycling of e-waste magnets, and public-private R&D clusters, reducing environmental risks and technological dependence.

Policy Stability

• Provide long-term offtake agreements, viability gap funding, and ESG-compliant mining frameworks, ensuring investor confidence and sustainable sectoral growth.