Parliament replies digest (21–25 Jul 2025): rare earths, Kudankulam, wildlife counts, NCAP

What happened

• AMD estimates about 7.23 million tonnes of rare earth oxide in 13.15 Mt of monazite in coastal and inland sands, plus 1.29 Mt REO in hard rocks of Gujarat and Rajasthan [PIB, Parliament reply].
• Kudankulam units 1 and 2 (2 x 1000 MW) are running; units 3-6 are under construction [PIB, Parliament reply].
• Tigers rose from 2967 (2018) to 3682 (2022); Gujarat’s 2025 estimate put lions at 891 against 674 in 2020; elephants were 29964 in 2017; 58 tiger reserves cover about 2.5% of area [PIB, Parliament reply].
• NCAP (January 2019) covers 130 cities in 24 States/UTs [PIB, Parliament reply].

Background

• The Monsoon Session opened on 21 July and was scheduled to run to 21 August, with 21 sittings over 32 days [PIB]. An all-party meeting on 20 July preceded it [PIB].

Why it matters

• Monazite also holds thorium, which links rare earths to the nuclear programme.