IREL (India) Limited has taken forward its proposal to extract atomic minerals along the coastline of Kanniyakumari district by seeking Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance from the Union Environment Ministry. The proposal is currently being examined.

The project is designed to mine atomic and associated heavy minerals — such as monazite, zircon, ilmenite, rutile, sillimanite, and garnet — across a 1,144-hectare coastal belt in Killiyoor taluk.