Mineral Belts Of India: Major Minerals, Characteristics, Examples - UPSC Notes

India is vastly endowed with minerals, which occur in concentrated areas locally called mineral belts. These belts are regions with concentrations of essential minerals such as coal, iron ore, bauxite and manganese. India also has three large mineral belts: the North-Eastern Plateau belt, the Central belt, and the Southern belt. All the belts contribute to the industries and the economic growth of India, as well as industrial growth and civilisations. The belts have a significant role in employment, or creating employment, particularly in states where mining is prevalent in India.

The 'Major Minerals in India' is one of the most important topics for the UPSC IAS exam. It covers a significant part of the Geography in the General Studies Paper-1 and UPSC prelims syllabus. In this article, we shall study the facts related to the minerals in India, the distribution and types of mineral resources, physical characteristics, and more. The UPSC aspirants can also get help from Testbook's UPSC CSE Coaching to boost their UPSC exam preparation! 

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What are Minerals?

Minerals are naturally occurring substances that are typically solid, inorganic, and have a crystalline structure. They are taken out of the ground through mining or quarrying after being created from the earth's crust over geological time. The world is formed of mineral elements, independently or in myriad varieties called compounds. A mineral is composed of a single component or compound. By description, a mineral is a naturally occurring inorganic substance with a solid chemical composition and an atomic structure. The features in the earth's crust are often seen only, but are usually integrated with other elements to make different substances. These substances are identified as minerals.

• Several economic sectors depend on minerals, including construction, manufacturing, electronics, and energy production.
• They manufacture cement, metals, glass, fertilisers, and electronic parts. Gold, silver, and diamonds used in jewellery and other ornamental items are among the minerals admired for their aesthetic attributes.
• Minerals are frequently traded internationally because of their scarcity and importance to the economy, and many nations view them as essential resources.
• It has an orderly atomic form, solid chemical formatting, and material properties.
• A mineral is formed of two or more components. But sometimes single-element minerals like copper, sulphur, silver, graphite, gold, etc., are also seen.
• Though the number of components making up the lithosphere is limited, they are merged in many additional ways to make up many types of minerals.
• At least 2,000 minerals have been recognised in the Earth's crust. Yet, nearly all the naturally emerging ones are associated with six primary mineral groups known as the principal rock-forming minerals.
• The primary origin of all minerals is the hot magma in the Earth's interior.
• When magma chills, crystals of minerals arise, and a frequent series of minerals are formed successively to harden to create rocks.
• Minerals such as petroleum, coal, and natural gas are from organic sources and are seen in liquid, solid, and gaseous forms.

India's Mineral belts are a large geo-spatial region endowed with various mineral resources. These belts play a massive role in mining and industrial progress. India has three main mineral zones: the North-Eastern Plateau, Central, and Southern. The belts for these minerals are rich in valuable minerals, including coal, iron, gold, aauxite, and manganese. It supports significant industries, including steel, power, and cement, and facilitates an increase in employment and regional economic growth.

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Mineral Distribution in India

• India is one of the most mineral-abundant countries in the world and has vast quantities of an ample diversity of minerals. 
• The old hard rocks characterise the Indian subcontinent, and the orogenic architecture is prominent, which has enabled the development of practically all mineral types. 
• The Gondwana rocks become the richest source in this setting, containing virtually all the known mineral species. 
• Metal mineral deposits are mainly found on the crystalline basement of the peninsula plateau, with the non-metallic deposits being abundant in the alluvial plains. 
• Its coal reserves are concentrated in the Damodar, Sone, the Mahanadi and Godavari valleys, with over 97 % of the reserves found there. 
• The concentration of petroleum resources is no exception, as 40 per cent is found in Assam, 35 per cent in Gujarat, and 25 per cent in Mumbai High, all of which are offshore deposits in the basin of sediments in the Arabian Sea. 
• Recent hydrocarbon discoveries were reported within the Krishna-Godavari and Kaveri basins. 
• The largest deposits lie east of one between Mangalore and Kanpur, insofar as metal production is concerned.

Physical Characteristics of Minerals

Minerals show different physical characteristics, including colour, lustre, hardness, streak, cleavage, fracture, and crystal form, that are used to specify and explain them. These properties usually relate to a mineral's chemical formulation and crystal form. These contain physical and chemical properties such as hardness, cleavage, density, colour, crystallography, magnetism, electrical conductivity, radioactivity, and fluorescence. 

• A mineral's hardness determines how resistant it is to scratching or abrasion. It is rated using the Mohs scale, which goes from 1 (softest) to 10 (hardest, like a diamond).
• A mineral's colour can differ depending on its composition, impurities, and other elements. But some minerals have distinctive colours, like sulphur (yellow), malachite (green), and hematite.
• A mineral's lustre describes how it reflects light. The lustre of minerals can be metallic (like gold), vitreous (like glass), pearly (like pearl), or drab (like clay).
• When a mineral fractures, it does so over an uneven surface, as opposed to when it cleaves along a flat surface. Minerals can display conchoidal, irregular, or splintery fracture and excellent, good, or bad cleavage.
• Depending on the structure and composition of the mineral, it can change. Pyrite, for instance, is denser than quartz.
• Many minerals form distinct crystal shapes, such as cubes, hexagons, or prisms. The mineral's internal structure determines these shapes and can be used to identify them.

For more info, check out the article on the Physical Characteristics of minerals for UPSC preparation!

List of Major Minerals in India

India has a vast mineral base consisting of various major minerals, such as coal, iron ore, bauxite, copper, gold, zinc and others. Minerals are crucial to India's economy and industrial development. Notable mineral resources in India are coal, the 4th largest reserve in the world; manganese ore, 7th largest reserve in the world as of 2013; lithium ore, 6 th largest reserve in the world as of 2023; iron ore, mica, bauxite, 5 th largest reserve in the world as in 2013, natural gas, chromite, limestone, diamonds, and thorium. The oil reserves in India are found in the Bombay High along the coast in Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Eastern Assam, which supplies 25 per cent of the country's needs.

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Mineral Belts of India

Geographical Distribution Of Minerals In India. India has major mineral belts, which include the North Eastern Peninsular Belt, South Western Peninsular Belt, the Central Belt, the North Western Belt and the Southern Belt. The country has minerals that provide the necessary foundations for industrial growth. The minerals in India are concentrated in three belts. There can be some isolated, weird events in individual places. The North-Eastern Peninsular Belt (Chhota Nagpur Plateau) is India's most prosperous mineral belt. This belt of Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha is well-known to have large deposits of minerals such as iron ore, coal, manganese, bauxite, mica, copper, chromite, and kyanite. This belt has greatly benefited India's economic progress since it provided the inputs required by industries and infrastructure development.

North-Eastern Peninsular Belt 

• It is a mineral belt in India that stretches from the Chota Nagpur region in the north to the Godavari- Krishna River Valley in the south. 
• Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Bihar, and portions of Andhra Pradesh cover most of this region. The massive mineral riches in this belt, which also contain sizable stocks of bauxite, coal, and iron ore, are well-known,
• It also has some of India's most significant manganese ore resources. Copper, mica, limestone, and graphite are essential minerals in India.
• The region's rich mineral resources have been a significant factor for economic growth in India, as the belt contributes significantly to the country's iron and steel, aluminium, and coal industries. 
• Adding to it, due to the presence of high-grade reserves of mica, the North Eastern Peninsular Belt is one of the world's leading producers of mica-based products.

Southern Belt 

• The Southern Belt of India is a famous mineral belt stretching across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. 
• Iron ore, manganese ore, bauxite, limestone, and graphite are among the mineral formations found in reasonable quantities in this area. Some of the nation's most significant coal and mica resources are found in this area, too.
• For the Indian steel, aluminium, and coal industries, this mineral belt is a great supplier of raw materials. It is one of the biggest manufacturers of mica-based goods worldwide, too.
• The presence of these minerals has allowed for the development of various industries in the region, like cement and glass manufacturing. This belt is an integral part of India's economic growth and development.

South-Western Belt 

• The South-Western Belt of India stretches across the states of Goa, Maharashtra, and Gujarat. 
• This belt is known for having many limestone, bauxite, Iron ore, and manganese ore. A few of the largest deposits of mica, graphite, and copper may be seen in this region.
• Due to the belt's enormous contribution to the nation's iron and steel, Al, and coal sectors, the vast natural resources of the South-Western Belt have been a significant factor in our country's economic progress. 
• Adding to it, due to the presence of high-grade reserves of mica, this region is one of the world's leading producers of mica-based products. The South-Western Belt is integral to our country's economic growth and development.

North-Western Belt 

• The North-Western Belt of India is a region rich in minerals, including iron ore, bauxite, zinc, and copper. Located in the western part of the country, this belt extends from the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat to Chhattisgarh. 
• Iron ore, bauxite, coal, dolomite, manganese, and zinc are the principal minerals in this area. The most significant material found in this area is iron ore, which is used to make steel.
• Aluminium is produced using bauxite, and electrical and electronic products need zinc and copper. Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh have the most mining activity in India's North Western Belt.
• The region has several thermal power plants, cement plants, and other industries.

Other Belts

The Himalayan Belt

• The Himalayan Belt is deficient in metallic minerals in general.
• In the Himalayas, however, there are valuable pockets of minerals such as copper, lead, zinc, bismuth, bauxite, antimony, nickel-cobalt, tungsten, precious stones, gold, silver, gypsum, limestone, and dolomite, as well as precious stones, gold, silver, gypsum, limestone, and dolomite.

The Central Belt

• The central belt comprises Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Maharashtra.
• Bauxite, Manganese, Limestone, Marble, Uranium, Coal, Gems, and Mica are all found in this belt.
• This is the country's second-largest mineral belt.

Indian Ocean Belt

• Mineral oil and natural gas are abundant on the Arabian Sea's continental shelf and in the Bay of Bengal.
• Manganese, phosphate, barium, aluminium, silicon, iron, titanium, sodium, potassium, chromium, monazite, ilmenite, magnetite, and garnet are high-grade nodules on the seabed.

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Conclusion

The mineral belts found in India play a paramount role in the development of the country economically and industrially. Valuable minerals such as coal, iron ore, bauxite and manganese are abundant in the three major belts of minerals: the North-Eastern Plateau Belt, the Central Belt and the Southern Belt. The core areas that benefit from these resources are power, steel, cement, and infrastructure. Proper and greener utilisation of these mineral resources can increase employment, exports and the development in such regions. But this must be balanced development, taking care of the environment. Provided that they are used intelligently, the mineral wealth available in India can significantly contribute to the country's self-sustainability and international competitiveness in terms of natural resources.