Dedicated rare earth corridors will help in reducing strategic dependencies: IN-SPACe chairman Pawan Kr Goenka

IN-SPACe chairman Pawan Kr Goenka

Pawan Goenka, Chairman of Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) has lauded the Centre's proposal in Budget 2026 to establish a dedicated rare earth corridors saying that it will help in reducing strategic dependencies.

"The proposal to establish dedicated Rare Earth Corridors across mineral-rich states is a timely step towards securing critical materials, strengthening domestic value chains, and reducing strategic dependencies," Goenka said in a statement.

Goenka is also the chairman of the SCALE Committee, Government of India.

On February 1, Finance Minister Nirmala announced a major push to strengthen India’s rare earth ecosystem by proposing the creation of dedicated rare earth corridors across four mineral-rich states.

The proposed corridors will span Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, and are aimed at boosting mining, processing, research and downstream manufacturing.

“The Union Budget 2026 continues to strengthen the foundations required for sustained economic growth. With wide-ranging reforms across sectors, the focus on manufacturing with a boost to creating Champion MSMEs, and infrastructure reflects an understanding that scale and resilience are built through stable policy and institutional support," Goenka said.

He also pointed towards measures such as simplification of tax processes, decriminalisation of compliance-related provisions, and GST rationalisation, and said that it will ease adherence, improve predictability for businesses, and encourage entrepreneurship.

"At the same time, targeted customs duty exemptions to support domestic manufacturing and supply-chain integration will further contribute to a more competitive, resilient economy where businesses can invest with confidence and plan for the long term," he added.