Which of the following statements about Rare Earth Elements (REEs) and Critical Minerals is/are correct?
- Modern technological innovations including Artificial Intelligence, robotics and space exploration extensively utilise Rare Earth Elements (REEs).
- China has the highest share in mining of REEs followed by India.
- The Government of India launched the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) in 2025 to establish a robust framework for self-reliance in the critical mineral sector.
- Rare Earth Elements are a set of 13 metallic elements.
Select the answer using the code given below:
Correct answer: A
Explanation
Rare Earth Elements are a group of 17 metallic elements — the 15 lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium (per USGS, IUPAC and standard chemistry references). Statement 4, which calls REEs '13 metallic elements', is therefore wrong. Statement 1 is correct: REEs are critical to AI chips, robotics, EVs and space tech. Statement 2 is wrong: China dominates global REE mining (~60-70%), but India is not second — the United States (~13% via the Mountain Pass mine) is the world's second-largest REE producer, followed by Myanmar and Australia. Statement 3 is correct: the Union Cabinet approved the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) in January 2025 to build self-reliance in critical minerals. Hence only 1 and 3 are correct.