The National Conference on Innovations in Coal & Mineral Characterization for Sustainable Resource Utilization (ICMCS-2025), organized by CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory (CSIR-NML) in Jamshedpur, successfully concluded on January 31, 2025, at Kolkata. The event saw the participation of approximately 100 delegates from 30 renowned institutions across India, including IITs, GSI, universities, CSIR, BARC, and Tata Steel. The conference provided a platform for presenting research findings on the sustainable utilization of coal, ores, and minerals, with a particular focus on the preparation of Certified Reference Material (CRM) as part of the Make in India initiative, aimed at reducing import reliance.

The conference enabled researchers, scientists, PhD scholars, and industry professionals to exchange ideas and contribute toward the vision of "Vikashit Bharat" by 2047. During the valedictory session,  Monika Sahu conducted the proceedings, with delegates expressing their appreciation for Dr. Sandip Ghosh Chowdhury, Director of CSIR-NML, and Sanchita Chakravarty, Chairperson of ICMCS-2025, for organizing a successful event. The importance and benefits of such conferences in driving innovation and collaboration in the field were emphasized.

Awards were presented to the winners in both the oral presentation and poster presentation categories. The winners of the oral presentations were: P. Kumar – IIT Kharagpur, Susmit M. Nimje – Tata Steel, and Munmun Maji – CSIR-CIMFR Bharat.

The winners of the poster presentations were: Kanishk Kumar Karan – AcSIR, CIMFR, Jamshedpur, Kundan Kumar – AcSIR NML, Jamshedpur, Neelu Priya Tirky – Ranchi University.

The conference concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr. Rajen Kundu, Convener of ICMCS-2025, who highlighted the success of the event and expressed gratitude for the collaborative efforts that made the conference a valuable knowledge-sharing platform.