🏔️ From Kashmir to the World: A Green Nickel Revolution Powered by STEAM Innovation

🌍 A New Kashmir in the Headlines — One of Innovation

When you hear the word Kashmir, what comes to mind?

Often, it’s snow-covered mountains, breathtaking beauty—or unfortunately, conflict.

But this time, Kashmir is making global headlines for innovation. And rightfully so. In June 2025, a young scientist from Kulgam, Dr. Ubaid Manzoor, co-authored a groundbreaking study published in Nature. The research revealed a revolutionary method to extract nickel from low-grade ore using hydrogen plasma—a one-step process that could cut carbon emissions by 84% and energy use by 18%, compared to conventional methods.

This is more than a scientific breakthrough—it's a defining moment where Kashmir contributes to global sustainability.

India’s Hidden Nickel — Long Lost Opportunity

India has long depended on imports for nickel. Yet hidden in places like Odisha’s Sukinda and parts of Kashmir’s lesser-known mineral zones are large reserves of laterite and serpentinized ore—often ignored due to low nickel content.

But with Dr. Manzoor’s method, these ores can now be economically and sustainably processed, turning what was once considered waste into Green Nickel.

This process avoids harmful acid-leaching and coke-burning steps. Instead, a hydrogen-powered arc does the work in one go. Not only is this a cleaner approach, but it aligns perfectly with India’s Green Hydrogen Mission, opening doors to a self-reliant and export-ready future.

📈 From Net Importer to Green Nickel Exporter

India currently spends over $1.2 billion annually on nickel imports and exports only a fraction in return. But this innovation could flip that trend. If even 10% of India’s untapped laterite ore is processed using hydrogen-plasma technology, we could:

• Fulfill domestic demand for stainless steel and EV batteries

• Export low-carbon nickel to premium global markets

• Promote Kashmir and Odisha as green mining hubs

Kashmir, once seen as a region of conflict, could now become a key contributor to India’s clean energy economy.

🧪 Building This Future: Why STEAM Is the Real Catalyst

This transformation won’t just be about ore—it’ll be about people.

To scale up this innovation, India needs more scientists, engineers, technologists, artists, and mathematicians—in other words, we need STEAM thinkers.

And the potential is already there:

• 82.2% of rural Indian teens (14–16) know how to use smartphones

• But only 57% use them for educational purposes

• The World Economic Forum lists creativity, analytical thinking, and sustainability as top job skills by 2030

  
  

Imagine students in Kashmir using their mobile phones to simulate nickel extraction processes, or filming short reels to explain hydrogen energy, or 3D printing models of clean-tech furnaces. That’s STEAM in action, driven by curiosity, tech, and the real-world needs of their homeland.

🏗️ Next Steps to Make a STEAM-Driven Innovation Zone

1. Pilot Plants in Sukinda & Kashmir – Launch demonstration units using local ore and hydrogen energy

2. District STEAM Labs – Equip young learners with tools to innovate and prototype with real materials

3. "Green Nickel" Certification – Promote traceable, low-carbon Indian nickel to the global EV market

   
   

Let Kashmir’s youth be part of this movement. Let their education be tied to the land, the minerals beneath it, and the technology of tomorrow.

🌟 Kashmir: A New Identity, A Global Role

Dr. Ubaid Manzoor’s breakthrough is not just a personal achievement—it’s a new narrative for Kashmir.

It’s the story of a region once known for turmoil, now being recognized for clean metallurgy and scientific leadership. It’s a call to transform how we view education—less rote, more real; less textbook, more tech.

In this story, Kashmir isn’t just the setting—it’s the solution.

📚 References

1. Manzoor U. et al. “Sustainable nickel enabled by hydrogen-based reduction,” Nature 641, 365–373 (2025).

2. Babra Wani, “Kashmir Scientist Ubaid Manzoor’s Breakthrough in Sustainable Nickel Extraction,” Kashmir Life, June 2025.

3. Magnus Geology Conf., “Recovery of Nickel from Sukinda Laterite Ore,” Abstract, 2022.

4. UN COMTRADE via Trading Economics – India Nickel Imports & Exports 2024.

5. Anandi Bhatia, “In rural India, 82.2% teens use smartphones, only 57% for study,” The Print, ASER 2024.

6. World Economic Forum, “Future of Jobs Report 2025.”