Myanmar ground reality hits India’s plans to tap rare earth minerals

India's plans to tap rare earth minerals from Myanmar's Kachin state have halted amid changing ground realities, though New Delhi remains committed to enhancing connectivity to ease import logistics.

India’s new rail link to Sairang in Mizoram bordering Myanmar is billed as one of the strategic infrastructure projects that could bring it a step closer to the neighbouring country’s mineral-rich regions.

Extending North East rail link

The Bairabi–Sairang railway line, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 13, is set to be extended by another 223 km to reach Hmawngbuchhuah, a small town on the India-Myanmar border in Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district.

This unassuming border town will serve as a key junction, linking India’s north-eastern region to Myanmar’s Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport (KMTT) Project via road, and providing landlocked North East India with strategic access to the Sittwe Port in the Southeast Asian country's Rakhine state.

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Once completed, the connectivity initiative is expected to boost India’s trade with the neighbour, though its impact on transporting significant quantities of rare-earth elements from mines in Kachin, located further northeast, may remain limited due to the absence of road or rail links within Myanmar connecting the Indian border to its mineral-rich region.

The best option would have been reopening the historic Stilwell Road. Now abandoned, this World War II-era route runs from Ledo in Assam through the Pangsau Pass in Arunachal Pradesh into Myanmar, passing through Myitkyina and Bhamo in Kachin State, before continuing onward to China. Ledo is also connected by a railhead. The distance between Ledo and Bhamo is approximately 620 km.

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Another potential option is to connect Kachin via Moreh in Manipur, which also borders Myanmar.

The Jiribam-Imphal rail link in Manipur is expected to become operational by March 2028, while its extension to Moreh is currently only at the planning stage, according to sources in the Northeast Frontier Railway.

India has so far not decided on reviving the Stilwell Road as its focus at the moment remains on the KMTT Project and further linking it to the nearest border points in Mizoram.

Big powers eye reserves

The linkage to Kachin assumes importance amid a growing geopolitical interest in its rare earth reserves. While China seeks to maintain its dominance over the supply chain, India and the US are also targeting these deposits to reduce their reliance on minerals controlled by Beijing.

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Trade data from last year shows that nearly 57 per cent of China’s rare earth element imports originated from Myanmar.

According to multiple reports, the Indian Ministry of Mines, this June, tasked Indian Rare Earths Ltd, a Mumbai-based public sector enterprise, and Hyderabad’s Midwest Advanced Materials Pvt Ltd, with assessing the viability of sourcing and transporting rare-earth samples from the mining sites in Kachin, which are currently under the control of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), a powerful ethnic armed group.

This happened after the KIA held an online discussion with an Indian delegation in December last year as part of its effort to explore alternative international markets, ostensibly to reduce its reliance on China.

Policy shift

The move to directly engage with a non-state enterprise to procure the mineral signals a policy shift by New Delhi, particularly given its close ties with the Myanmar junta.

Around the same time, two proposals were reportedly submitted to the US vice president’s office regarding access to Myanmar’s rare-earth reserves.

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According to a report by the US-based Stimson Center, one proposal advocated engagement with the military-led State Administration Council, which has been governing Myanmar since the February 2021 coup, while the other recommended direct negotiations with the KIA.

In Kachin, mining operations have primarily focused on heavy rare earth elements, particularly dysprosium and terbium. These elements are essential for the production of high-strength permanent magnets used in technologies such as EVs and wind turbines.

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The majority of rare-earth mining sites are concentrated around Chipwe and Pangwa, a region located near the China border, approximately 125 km northeast of Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin. Additional mining activity also occurs in Nhkawng Pa, a mountainous area in the state’s Bhamo district, which borders China.

Plan still in progress

India’s bid to obtain samples, however, has so far not progressed beyond a few rounds of “fruitful” discussions with the KIA, sources familiar with the development told The Federal.

The KIA, known for its love-hate relationship with China, showed interest in exploring the potential for bulk rare-earth exports to India. It also reportedly started procuring the samples as sought by India to assess the quality and volume of heavy rare earths for cost-feasibility studies.

The plan, however, faced a setback after Myanmar’s military regime intensified its counteroffensive in Kachin State, targeting rare earth and jade hubs controlled by the KIA, according to sources.

KIA spokesman Naw Bu was recently quoted by Myanmarese media as saying that the military regime plans to reclaim 'Special Region-1', a key rare-earth hub in Kachin. 'Special Region-1' comprises the townships of Chipwe, Tsawlaw, Pangwa, Kanpiketi, and Waingmaw.

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Alternative pact

Earlier this week, Bu also reported that fighting continues in Washawng and nearby villages. Capturing these areas would bring the junta closer to advancing on the rare-earth mining hubs of Chipwe and Kanpiketi.

According to Indian intelligence sources, the regime regained control of the headquarters of the 236th Infantry Battalion and the 5014th Tank Battalion, both previously seized by the KIA, on September 11.

While India is currently keeping a close watch on the unfolding “war situation” in Kachin, sources said it remains open to pursuing rare-earth mining even through a government-to-government agreement.