An inter-ministerial panel is set to examine replacing the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act with a broader law designed to simplify rules, strengthen enforcement and bring greater uniformity to the sector.
The government is weighing a major rewrite of India’s mining framework, with officials considering whether the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, should be replaced by a broader, modern law, according to Business Standard. The proposed overhaul is intended to fold in reforms aimed at making the system simpler for businesses and, in official language, more convenient for citizens as well.
According to the report, the Mines Ministry already administers the existing law, which has been amended several times to keep pace with changes in the sector. The new exercise would go further, with officials framing the mining industry as central not only to economic growth but also to strategic needs and the government’s longer-term “Viksit Bharat” goal for 2047.
An inter-ministerial committee chaired by the additional secretary in the mines ministry is expected to draw up the draft bill. The panel will study the current statute in full, look at international practice and recommend changes that reflect emerging trends in mining. Its remit also includes simplifying the legal language, improving coherence with related laws and constitutional provisions, and strengthening the law’s clarity and enforceability. State governments are expected to be consulted before any draft is finalised.
The timing is notable because the MMDR framework has been in flux again this year. Reporting from OneIndia and other legal briefings indicates that the Mines and Minerals Amendment Act, 2026, received presidential assent in August and came into force shortly afterwards, while Business Standard reported in August that the government had also moved to tighten central control over mineral-bearing land and state-level levies. The broader policy direction, according to those reports, suggests New Delhi is seeking a more uniform and tightly coordinated regime for mineral development, taxation and regulation.
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