New Delhi: The Union Cabinet has reportedly cleared amendments to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, to allow commercial mining of lithium and other critical minerals including beryllium, titanium, niobium, tantalum and zirconium. At the moment, private companies are not allowed to mine these minerals.The minerals in question are key to the production of mobile phones, electric vehicles, solar panels, semiconductors and wind turbines.“All these mineral blocks [of these critical minerals] will be auctioned,” an official aware of the developments told The Hindu Businessline. According to The Print, once Parliament clears the amendments, the government will be able to grant a single exploration licence to companies through such auctions.“A single exploration licence will encourage more private investment in the sector, where currently private presence is limited,” a government source told The Print.Earlier this year, India announced the discovery of its very first substantial lithium deposits, amounting to 5.9 million tonnes, in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district. Experts had told The Wire then that India’s lithium find is good news. If more assessments reveal that the lithium resources can indeed be tapped into and used, it will prove a shot in the arm for manufacturing electric vehicles in the country. However, the development of these reserves will need to be conducted sustainably – both in terms of the environment and equity – scientists added.In June, the mines ministry had compiled the first ever report on identification of critical minerals for India.