President Ram Nath Kovind authorities must be mindful of the human side of mining. Addressing the gathering after presenting National Geosciences Awards for 2017 in New Delhi, local communities must benefit from the exploration, extraction, and development of mineral resources. The mineral resources in India are found in regions that have been home of tribal communities since generations. It is important that these communities are part of prosperity that the mining economy creates. The President application of geoscience is extremely diverse which will lead to an expansion of economic activities. India must mine more but mine better in a sustainable manner. India's per capita consumption of many resources and commodities is still very low by global standards and there is room to grow high-quality research initiatives are required for sustainable and ecological friendly resource generation. The President also stressed on meaningful investment in technological innovation in the mining sector. The exploration of mineral blocks and auction will go a long way in enhancing financial health of states. The geoscientists have an important role to play in enhancing agricultural productivity and farmer incomes in providing a bedrock to the Smart Cities initiative and helping citizens fight the challenge of water scarcity, which has emerged as a pressing problem. The 36 mineral blocks have been auctioned generating an additional revenue of 1 lakh 11 thousand crore rupees. He informed that new blocks will be auctioned in the near future. Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana is providing welfare to areas and people affected by mining-related operations.