About Critical Minerals Innovation Hackathon - CMiH 2026
The Ministry of Mines, Government of India, through the Jawaharlal Nehru Aluminium Research Development and Design Centre (JNARDDC), launched the Critical Minerals Innovation Hackathon (CMiH) 2026 on 25 August 2026.
The Hackathon seeks to strengthen the objectives of the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) by mustering students, researchers, academic and R&D institutions, start-ups and innovators to develop innovative and technically feasible solutions to identified challenges in the critical minerals sector in India.
Critical minerals are essential for clean energy, electric mobility, electronics, advanced manufacturing and other strategic sectors. Strengthening domestic capabilities across the critical minerals value chain is a key objective of the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM).
In support of these objectives, the CMiH (Critical Minerals Innovation Hackathon) 2026 aims to bring together students, researchers, R&D institutions, start-ups and innovators to develop practical solutions to identified technological challenges. Shortlisted teams will be supported through expert mentoring to develop their ideas into proof-of-concepts or prototypes, with promising solutions having potential for further R&D, pilot demonstration and technology development.
Guidelines for Applicants.....
Organisation of the Hackathon
JNARDDC, Nagpur, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Mines, will serve as the Organising Authority / Host Institute for the CMiH 2026.
After the initial idea submission and shortlisting, focused platform will be provided for shortlisted ideas and selected teams will be onboarded to a dedicated platform for orientation, mentoring sessions and interaction with relevant domain experts and progress tracking. The mentoring support will be provided to refine the approaches, clarify technical requirements and access relevant datasets or technical inputs, wherever available. Shortlisted teams will subsequently develop their concepts into proof-of-concepts or prototypes, with periodic technical interaction during the development period.
Problem Statements
The current Hackathon focuses on two Problem Statements:
1. Mineral Prospectivity Mapping from Open Data: To develop a model using GSI Bhukosh occurrence data, Sentinel-2 spectral indices and open aeromagnetic/geochemical datasets to identify areas prospective for lithium pegmatites or Rare Earth Elements (REEs). The expected outcome is a prospectivity heatmap for one district, validated against known mineral occurrences.
2. Smart Technology and Patent Tracker for Critical Minerals: To develop a software/web-based platform integrating publicly available information on Indian patents and R&D activities related to critical minerals. The platform is expected to provide technology mapping, trends, information on leading organisations and research areas, identification of technology gaps and emerging areas, and support technology intelligence for R&D planning and policy decisions.
Who can apply?
Students, researchers, start-ups and innovators invited to participate; registrations open till 20 September 2026
To develop solutions interdisciplinary participations are encouraged involving expertise in areas such as geology, mining, mineral processing, metallurgy, materials engineering, computer science, AI/ML, instrumentation and related engineering disciplines.
