Bhubaneswar: The 64th meeting of the Central Geological Programming Board (CGPB) was held at the convention centre of the Lokseva Bhavan in Odisha capital today.

The event was chaired by V.L. Kantha Rao, Secretary, Ministry of Mines and Chairman CGPB. Asit Saha, Director General, GSI and Sanjay Lohiya, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Mines, also graced the occasion.

The event brought together key stakeholders from exploration, research, and mining sectors to discuss advancements in geosciences, mineral exploration strategies, and critical challenges. The discussions focused on mineral resource augmentation, clean energy initiatives, geohazard management, and sustainable development, emphasizing a collaborative approach to emerging priorities.

 The proposed Annual Programme of GSI for ensuing Field Season year 2025-26 was placed before the Board for discussion. For the upcoming year 2025-26, GSI has formulated about 1,065 scientific programmes, which includes 402 Mineral Development projects (G2;G3;G4; and Offshore Explorations) that has the potential to generate auctionable mineral blocks in near future and 167 Mineral Discovery Projects (RMT; Research Project; C-MAP;GT; MPA; Multispectral/Hyperspectral projects) having potential for generating promising areas for future exploration in G4 stage.

Within the exploration activity, a significant focus has been placed on critical mineral exploration, with 227 dedicated projects targeting strategically important mineral commodities such as REE, RM, graphite, lithium, vanadium, and PGE, marking a 16% increase compared to the previous year.

The field season programme of GSI for FS 2025-26 includes 25% of investigations on critical minerals, that entails out of the total budget of GSI, about 300 crores will be spent on critical mineral exploration and investigation.

 In addition, GSI has outlined 141 projects under Natural Hazard Studies, Public Good Geoscience, and Fundamental Geoscience for 2025-26. These include projects on landslides, geotechnical studies, polar & glaciology research, climate change, and environmental studies, as well as initiatives in fundamental geoscience. This comprehensive approach reflects GSI's commitment to disaster risk reduction, climate resilience, and scientific innovation.

GSI has initiated 65 geoinformatics projects leveraging cutting-edge AI/ML modeling, legacy data integration, and the deployment of emerging technologies like Magnetotelluric & Heliborn survey to enhance exploration efficiency. A key highlight of the event was the announcement of the Mineral Hunt Techniques Hackathon winners, showcasing start-ups and unicorns employing AI/ML-driven prospectivity analysis to accelerate target, identification of mineral deposit discovery.

 Furthermore, several publications, including on the Geology and Mineral Resources of Jharkhand and Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and a Geology and Mineral Resource Map of the North Eastern Region were released on the occasion.