MINERAL

RESOURCES

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MINERAL RESOURCES

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igneous processes, (2) metamorphic processes,

(3) sedimentary processes, and (4) weathering
and groundwater processes.
1. Igneous processes:

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A naturally occurring substance that has a

definite chemical composition is a mineral.
Minerals are not evenly distributed over space.
They are concentrated in a particular area or
rock formations. Minerals are formed in different
types of geological environments, under varying
conditions. They are created by natural processes
without any human interference.

Mineral resources range from the soils that

support agriculture to metals such as silicon,
which is used in high-technology applications
such as computers. Though technically not
minerals, oil, natural gas, coal, and some other
sources of energy are also included as mineral
resources because they are extracted from Earth.
Mining worldwide produces about $500 billion
worth of metallic ore each year; another $700
billion of energy minerals are produced.
Types of Minerals

There are over three thousand different

minerals. On the basis of composition, minerals
are classified mainly as metallic and non-metallic
minerals.

Metallic Minerals: The metallic minerals

contain metal in raw form. Metals are hard
substances that conduct heat and electricity and
have a characteristic luster or shine. Iron ore,
bauxite, manganese ore are some examples.
Metallic minerals may be ferrous or non-ferrous.
Ferrous Minerals: Ferrous minerals like iron
ore, manganese and chromites contain iron. A
non ferrous mineral does not contain iron but
may contain some other metal such as gold,
silver, copper or lead.
Non-Metallic Minerals: The non-metallic
minerals do not contain metals. Limestone, mica
and gypsum are examples of such minerals. The
mineral fuels like coal and petroleum are also
non-metallic minerals.
Processes that form mineral deposits

The origin of most ore deposits is related to

fundamental geologic processes. These are: (1)

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Many mineral resources are formed by

magmatic processes. Prime examples are the
exotic ultramafic volcanic rocks that host
diamonds. Diamond crystals were probably
ripped from diamond-bearing wall rocks by
magma rising through the deep. Laboratory
experiments show that diamond is stable at
depths of at least 150 to 200 km. At low pressure,
the stable form of carbon is the soft mineral
graphite, but the reaction of diamond to form
graphite proceeds very slowly at the low
temperatures found at Earths surface. Besides
its use as a gem, diamonds have found industrial
uses as abrasives and as strong coatings.
Diamond deposits are limited to regions
underlain by Precambrian crust. The richest
deposits are found in South Africa and Australia.

Concentrations of other ores result, when

minerals forming in magma have different
temperatures of crystallization and density.
Some ores are formed when molten rock cools
to form igneous rock. This process forms building
stone such as granite, a variety of gemstones,
sulfur ore, and metallic ores, which involve dense
chromium or platinum minerals that sink to the
bottom of liquid magma.

Further during fractional crystallization,

water and elements that do not enter the minerals
separated from the magma by crystallization will
end up as the last residue of the original magma.
This residue is rich in silica and water along with
elements like the Rare Earth Elements (many of
which are important for making phosphors in
color television picture tubes), Lithium,
Tantalum, Niobium, Boron, Beryllium, Gold, and
Uranium. This residue is often injected into
fractures surrounding the igneous intrusion and
crystallizes as a rock called a pegmatite that
characteristically consists of large crystals.

[1]

2. Metamorphic processes:
Metamorphism occurs deep in the earth
under very high temperature and pressure and
produces several building stones, including
marble and slate, as well as some nonmetallic
ore, including asbestos, talc, and graphite.
Metamorphism changes the texture and
mineralogy of rocks and in the process can form
important new mineral resources.

Placer Ore Deposits- substances are

concentrated by flowing surface waters
either in streams or along coastlines.

The velocity of flowing water determines

whether minerals are carried in suspension or
deposited. When the velocity of the water slows,
large minerals or minerals with a higher density
are deposited. Heavy minerals like gold,
diamond, and magnetite of the same size as a
low density mineral like quartz will be deposited
at a higher velocity than the quartz, thus the
heavy minerals will be concentrated in areas
where water current velocity is low. Mineral
deposits formed in this way are called placer
deposits. They occur in any area where current
velocity is low, such as in point bar deposits,
between ripple marks, behind submerged bars,
or in holes on the bottom of a stream.

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Further Hot hydrothermal fluids circulating

through the oceanic crust cause seafloor
metamorphism. These fluids leach metals (such
as manganese, iron, copper, zinc, lead) and
sulfur from the crust and transport these
elements to hot spring vents on the ocean floor.
Minerals precipitate when the hydrothermal
fluids mix with seawater and cool. Mounds of
sulfide ores collect on the seafloor where the hot
waters are released

3. Sedimentary Processes:

Sedimentary processes occur in rivers that

concentrate sand and gravel (used in
construction), as well as dense gold particles and
diamonds that weathered away from bedrock.
These gold and diamond ore bodies are called
placer deposits. Other sedimentary ore deposits
include the deep ocean floor, which contains
manganese and cobalt ore deposits and
evaporated lakes or seawater, which produce
halite and a variety of other salts.
Examples:

[2]

Evaporite Deposits-Evaporation of lake

water or sea water results in the loss of
water and thus concentrates dissolved
substances in the remaining water. When
the water becomes saturated in such
dissolved substance they precipitate from
the water. Deposits of halite (table salt),
gypsum (used in plaster and wall board),
borax (used in soap), and sylvite (potassium
chloride, from which potassium is extracted
to use in fertilizers) result from this process.

Iron Formations- These deposits are of iron

rich chert and a number of other iron
bearing minerals that were deposited in
basins within continental crust during the
Proterozoic (2 billion years or older). They
appear to be evaporite type deposits, but if
so, the composition of sea water must have
been drastically different than it is today.

4. Hydrothermal Ore Deposits

Hydrothermal is the most common oreforming process. It involves hot, salty water that
dissolves metallic elements from a large area and
then precipitates ore minerals in a smaller area,
commonly along rock fractures and faults.
Molten rock commonly provides the heat and
the water is from groundwater, the ocean, or
the magma itself. The ore minerals usually
contain sulfide (S2-) bonded to metals such as
copper, lead, zinc, mercury, and silver. Actively
forming hydrothermal ore deposits occur at
undersea mountain ranges, called oceanic ridges,
where new ocean crust is produced. Here,
mineral-rich waters up to 350C sometimes
discharge from cracks in the crust and precipitate
a variety of metallic sulfide minerals that make
the water appear black; they are called black
smokers

Hydrothermal deposits are produced when

groundwater circulates to depth and heats up
either by coming near a hot igneous body at
depth or by circulating to great depth along the
geothermal gradient. Such hot water can dissolve
valuable substances throughout a large volume
of rock. As the hot water moves into cooler areas
of the crust, the dissolved substances are
precipitated from the hot water solution. If the
cooling takes place rapidly, such as might occur
in open fractures or upon reaching a body of
cool surface water, then precipitation will take
place over a limited area, resulting in a
concentration of the substance attaining a higher

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value than was originally present in the rocks

through which the water passed.

areas with ore deposits. The iron content is

anything between 35 and 50 per cent.

5. Residual Ore Deposits

In Andhra Pradesh, the Chityal,

Dasturabad, Kalleda, Rabanpalli and
Amberpeta deposits and those south of the
coalfields at Singreni have an iron content
ranging from 35 to 45 per cent. Only 20 to 28
per cent of iron is found in the Gopalpur, Utla,
Tatrariyepalli, Kottagudem and Cheruvapuram
deposits.
In Kerala, magnetite ore reserves are mostly
in the Kozhikode district and in Cherupa,
Eliyettimala, Nauminda, Naduvallur and
Allampara.

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During chemical weathering and original

body of rock is greatly reduced in volume by the
process of leaching, which removes ions from
the original rock. Elements that are not leached
form the rock thus occur in higher concentration
in the residual rock. The most important ore of
Aluminum, bauxite, forms in tropical climates
where high temperatures and high water
throughput during chemical weathering
produces highly leached lateritic soils rich in both
iron and aluminum. Most bauxite deposits are
relatively young because they form near the
surface of the Earth and are easily removed by
erosion acting over long periods of time.
Mineral Survey

The important minerals of the world and

their major producers along with India's position
are surveyed here.
IRON ORE :

One of the most widely distributed elements

of the earth's crust, iron rarely occurs in free state.

The finest ore is magnetite with nearly 70 per

cent iron content. These ore deposits are in
igneous or metamorphic rocks. The banded type
is considered to be the most important due to
extensive occurrence, easy amenability to
benefication by crushing and magnetic
separation and agglomeration. Its colour ranges
from dark brown to black. Sweden, Russia and
Liberia have magnetite deposits. In India,
deposits occur in Dharwar and Cuddapah
systems in the peninsula, in Karnataka
(Kudremukh), Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu
and Kerala.
The important iron ore deposits in Karnataka
include the Kudremukh deposits where the
percentage of iron ore varies from 30 to 40. Other
deposits in the state are Hariyur, Kunigal,
Siddarhali, Shankaraguddu, Ubrani, MaddurMalvalli, and Sargur in the Archi, Gangamula
and Gangrikal hill ranges.
The important deposits in Tamil Nadu are
at Chettari, Belukkurrichi, Namagiri, Panchalais, Sittinglinge, Kanjamalai, Tirthamalai,
and Mahadev hills in the Salem district, Kelur,
Malnad and Devala and Nilgiri district are also

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Haemetite with about 65 per cent iron is

hard, bumpy, compact and reddish in colour. It
occurs in sedimentary rocks in crystalline or
powdery forms. The Lake Superior areas in USA,
Qebec in Canada, Brazil, Russia, Liberia, China
and Spain have the ore.
Haemetite ores contribute to more than threefourths of India's total production of iron ores.
They are found in the Cuddapah and Dharwar
systems of the peninsular Deccan. They mostly
occur as laminated hematite, micaceous
haematite, hematite breecia and haematite
quartz schist.

In Jharkhand and Orissa, the two important

belts are the Gurumahisani - Badampahar belt
and the Barajamda group. In the former the iron
ore occurs in metamorphosed banded iron
formations in Mayurbhanj district in which the
iron content is low, i.e., 58 to 60 per cent, and of
siliceous nature. The latter covers parts of
Singhbhum district in Jharkhand and the
adjoining districts of Keonjhar and Sundergarh
in Orissa. This group contains the largest ore
reserves in the country. The massive ores where
the iron content ranges from 66 to 70 per cent
occur on top of hill ranges. The shaly ore may be
rich or as low as 50 per cent or less in iron. Blue
dust ore which is an extremely friable and
micaceous haematite powder containing about
68 per cent of iron is formed by leaching process.
There also occurs lateritic ore. The important
mining centres of Orissa and Jharkhand are
Barbil, Gua, Bonai, Joda, Kiriburu, Suleipat,
Gorumahisani, Noamundi, Barajamda, etc.

In Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh, the

areas where iron ores are common include the

[3]

Bailadilla, Raughat and Aridongri group in

Bastar district; Dalli-Rajhara group in the Durg
district; and the deposits in Jabalpur district.

Limonite (bog iron) is a brown ore occurring

in sedimentary formations. Its iron content is less
than 50 per cent and it has many impurities.

In Maharashtra the ore deposits are found

in the Chandrapura district. Here the important
deposits are located in Lohara, Pipalgaon, Asola,
Dewalgaon and Surajgarh. The Chandrapura
deposits have iron content between 55 to 60 per
cent. Even in Bailadilla and Durg districts, the
iron content ranges from 60 to 65 per cent.

It occurs in Alabama, USA. Siderite is a

carbonate of iron and is found near coal fields.
It is also a residual ore and has an iron content
of 20 to 30 per cent. Deposits of the Jurassic Age
are found in Lincolnshire, England, in France
and Luxembourg.
These ores are found in India in Garhwal
(Uttaranchal) and Mirzapur district (Uttar
Pradesh) and the Kangra Valley (Himachal
Pradesh).

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Babubudan hills in Chikmaglur district,
Sandur, Bellary and Hospet districts as well as
Shimoga and Chitradurg districts in Karnataka
are important producers of iron ores. The canoeshaped Sandur ranges of the Bellary Hospet area
contain large reserves of iron ore. The important
deposits of this area are NEB range, Ramandurg,
Abbalaguni, Rajpura, Donamalai, Devadri,
Kumaraswamy, Kammadheruvid and Belgal.
The iron content of the ores in the area is around
64 per cent.

In Goa, the deposits are mostly blue dust

with 60 per cent of iron. These ores are easily
amenable to pelletization, and include both
lumpy and fine varieties. In Goa the richer and
larger deposits are confined to north Goa
(between Adualpale and Usgaon). The
important deposits which contain more than 10
million tonnes of reserves are Bicholim-Sirigao
deposits, Gudnem-Dignem-Surle deposits,
Velgnem-Pale deposits and Arwalem deposits.
In Ratnagiri district, the areas where iron ores
are mostly prevalent include Vengurla, Guldure
and Aroes areas. The percentage of iron content
varies from 55 to 58.

The total recoverable reserves of iron ore in

India are about 10,052 million tonnes of
haematite and 3,408 million tonnes of magnetite.
The resources of very high grade ore are limited
and are restricted in Bailadila sector of
Chhattisgarh and to a lesser extent in BellaryHospet area of Karnata and Barajamda sector
in Jharkhand and Orissa. Indian ore has low
sulphur content which never goes above 0.6 per
cent.

MANGANESE ORE

In terms of composition of the

manganiferrous ores with regard to the
proportion of manganese to iron, It is customary
to use the term manganese ore for those
containing over 40 per cent of manganese. The
most common minerals are braunite, pyrolusite,
psilomelane and manganite. The ore contains
impurities like silica, lime, alumina, magnesia
and phosphorus.

In Andhra Pradesh the iron ore producing

areas are scattered through Anantpur,
Khamman, Krishna, Kurnool, Cuddapah and
Nellore districts where the main producing
centres are Jaggayapeta, Ramallakota, Veldurti,
Nayudupetta and Bayyaram. The iron content
varies from 55 to 66 per cent.

Manganese is used as a ferro alloy; it removes

gases and acts as a cleanser in the manufacture
of steel. Manganese is also used as a decoloriser
in glass, and in the manufacture of bleaching
powder and electric batteries.

In Bhilwara district of Rajasthan, the ore

deposits are in Moriza and in the Udaipur
district, in Nathrakipal. The iron content varies
from 55 to 62 per cent.

India is the third largest producer of

manganese ore in the world. The country's most
important ore deposits occur in the form of
sedimentary stratified metamorphic deposits in
the Dharwar system.

The other areas where minor deposits of iron

ore are prevalent include Assam, West Bengal,
the Himalayan region, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya
Pradesh, Punjab, and Jammu and Kashmir.

[4]

Georgia has huge deposits of maganese ore.

In India, extensive and rich manganese

deposits occur in Madhya Pradesh, Orissa,
Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and

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Karnataka. Indian manganese deposits display

some distinct geological formations, which are:
(a) deposits associated with the khondalite
rocks (garnet, sillimanite, gneisses) found
in the Srikakulam district of Andhra
Pradesh and in the Kalahandi and Koraput
districts in Orissa;

The deposits are associated with khondalite

rocks in Srikakulam district where Kodur
Devada, Sonpuram, Maudipilli, Batuva,
Garividi, Sivrem and Garbhan are chief centres.
Small deposits also occur at Sankarapolem and
Kothavalasa in Visakapatnam. Mineral content
is about 25 to 30 per cent. Phosphorus is high
and iron content is also fairly high.

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(b) deposits associated with the iron ore bearing

rocks (schists) found in Karnataka state in
the Sandur hills, as the Bisgold-Yellapur
deposits in North Kanara, and in the
Chitradurg and Shimoga belt, and the
Supa-Dandeli area of North Kanara;

manganese ore is mined in Ramdongri,

Kodergaon, Gumgaon, Satak, Kandia, Mansar,
Lohardongri, Morgaon, Manigaon, Gondadob,
Parsoda, Baldongri, Bhandarkhori. In Bhandara
district, the main mining areas are Kusumbah,
Pachala-Chilka, Bujrum, Asolpem, Sangi Kargi
and Sitasaongi. This ore occur in the South
Ratnagiri district also.

(c) deposits associated with limestone and

dolomite which occur in the SausarManganese-Marble province of Madhya
Pradesh, Jharkhand and Gangpur (Orissa),
Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, and Panch
Mahal and Vadodara districts of Gujarat,
The deposits of the group are generally
small and often have high phosphorus as
in the case of ores from Srikakulam districts.
Manganiferous shales and banded
manganiferous rocks with friable layers of
quartz are found associated with iron ore
group of rocks in Karnataka and Goa Ratnagiri. In Jharkhand and Orissa the ore
is low in phosphorous and high in iron.

The important areas in Madhya Pradesh are

Balaghat, Chindwara, Jabalpur, and Jhabhua
districts. The deposits occur in a westerly
direction for about 200 km for a width of 25 km.
Braunite, pyrolusite and psilomelane are the
important minerals. The ore is hard, lumpy and
compact in nature. The manganese content is
about 46 per cent. There is high silica content
but very low amount of phosphorus. This belt is
the major producer of ferro-manganese grade
ore in India. In Balaghat, the principal mining
areas are Katgaria, Langur, Varwali, Netra,
Tirodi, Batjari, Salwa, Jani, Sukali, Mirangpur,
Ukwa, Kochawahi and Chikpara. In
Chindwara district, the areas are in Godawari
and Wardha river valleys at Butkum, Goti,
Sitapur, Kachidhana and Machiwana. In
Jhabua, deposits occur in Thandala tehsil at
Rampura, Mandhi, Tumdia-Bandiwar and
Amlaimal. Small deposits occur in Jabalpur,
Dewas, Sehore and Nimar districts.
In Maharashtra, the manganese ore is of low
grade and is mainly mined in Nagpur district
and Bhandara district. In Nagpur district, the

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In Jharkhand and Orissa, the deposits are

associated with Precambrian iron ore and also
with quartzites, garnets and schists. The mineral
content varies from 40 to 55 per cent. In
Jharkhand, the important producing areas are
in Singhbhum, Hazaribagh, Dhanbad, Gaya and
Monghyr districts. The important areas in
Singhbhum district are Birmitrapur, Kalenda
and near Chaibasa, Mirgitnaur, Basadera and
Pahadpur and other localities where ore of low
grade is mined. In Orissa, the important
producers are Bhutura, patmuda, Naktipalli and
Jamunkria in Sundergarh district, Nishikhal in
Kalahandi district, Baijolla and Kutinga in
Koraput district, Jamda, Koira, Bambari,
Bhadrasabi and Dhubna in Keonjhar district.
Deposits are also found in Dhenkanal, Ganjam,
Cuttack and Mayurbhanj districts.

In Gujarat, the mineral content is around 45

per cent. Inferior quality of deposits also occur
at many places in important producers are in
the district of Panchmahal near Jatvad,
Shivrajpur, Dohad, Bhat and Bamankua and in
Vadodara district near Pani and between
Khandi and Unadharia.
In Karnataka manganese is raised in Sandur,
North Kanara, Tumkur and Shimoga district
which are associated with the Dharwar rocks.
The phosphorus and silica content is low, but
iron is high (5 to 19 per cent) and the mineral
content varies from 30 to 50 per cent.
Other areas where minor deposits are
prevalent include Goa and Rajasthan.

[5]

CHROMITE:
Chromite is the only ore mineral of chromium
and is an important alloying element in the
manufacture of steel. The world's leading
producer is South Africa Zimbabwe, Russia and
Kazakhstan are other producers.
In India the chromite deposits occur as the
following Precambrian formations of peninsular
India.

In Jharkhand chromite is found is

Singhbhum district in the hills of Rorburu,
Kiriburu, Kittaburu and Chittangburu around
Jojohatu area. The mineral content is 53 per cent
on an average.

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(a) Deposits associated with the Dharwar

metamorphic rocks in Karnataka and
Maharashtra.
(b) Deposits
associated
with
the
metamorphic rocks of iron ore in Bihar,
Jharkhand and Orissa.
1. Fracture lineament emplacements in gneissic
terrain in Tamil Nadu.

located in the Sukinda ultrabasic belt of Cuttack,

Dhenkanal district and in the Keonjhar district
of the state. The belt extends over a distance of
about 20 km and the width of the belt is about 2
km. The ore bodies are venticular in shape and
occur as lenses and patches within the laterised
ultrabasic rocks. The types of ores found to occur
are massive ores, banded ores, disseminated ores,
ferruginous lateritic ores, powdery or friable ores,
conglomeratic ores and placer ores.

(d) Younger deposits of the HimalayanArakan belt.

(e) Deposits of Andhra and those at
Bembat and Tashgaon (Ladakh), near
Moreah (Manipur), near Kokapu and
Vartha in Sabarkanta district (Gujarat)
and at Chakargaon (Andamans).

In Karnataka, good grade of chromite occurs

in Hassan district in an area of 89 sq km. The
main chromite bearing belt is the Nuggchalli belt
which extends over a distance of 125 km and
carries the important deposits of Byrapur,
Chikonhalli, Pensamudra, Bhaktarahalli,
Jambur and Tagadur. In the Byrapur area,
chrome is traced up to 180 m length with a width
of 9 m. In Mysore district minor bodies of
chromite occur in Kadkola, Talur, Gorur,
Dodkanya, Sindhuvalli and Dodkattur areas. In
Sindhuvalli area, the mineral content ranges
from 48 to 56 pe cent. Chitradurg, Shimoga and
Kadur also contain few deposits of chromite.
Low grade chromite is also found near Tarikere
in Chikmaglur district is also found near Tarikere
in Chikmaglur district and near Krishnarajpat
and Kabbal in Mandhya district.
In Maharashtra chromite occurs around
Kankauli and Wagda areas in Ratnagiri district.
The mineral content is 31 to 38 per cent. In
Bhandara district, it is found around Taka,
Balgatta and Pauni with a mineral content of 31
to 38 per cent.

Orissa is considered as the largest chromite

deposit in the country. The deposits are mainly

[6]

In Tamil Nadu, chromite occurs in

Sittampundi in Salem district. Bands of chromite
represent a lineament intrustion in the genetic
genesis. The mineral content is low it about 21
per cent.
TUNGSTEN:

Tungsten is a heavy metal used in steel alloys,

its chief alloys, is chief ore is wolfram. It is found
in large amounts in China. USA, Russia, Portugal
Australia and South Africa also have the metal.
NICKEL:

The main ore is pentlaudite, a complex

mixture of nickel, iron and sulphur. Nickel is also
often found in association with copper. It is used
for plating purposes as it does not rust. It is also
less magnetic than iron, so it can be used in metal
parts located near compasses. Canada produces
the largest amount of the world's nickel. Russia
and Australia have large resources.
COBALT:

A hard blue metal with properties similar to

iron, cobalt is used in making cobalt steel and in
radio-therapy. More than half of the world
production comes from Zaire. Zambia, Morocco,
Canada and Finland also produce cobalt.
VANADIUM:

The ores are carnotite, desdoisite, rescoelite

and patronite. It helps to remove non-metallic
impurities form steel; it is used in paints and dyes.
Major producers are South Africa, Russia and
USA.
MOLYBDENUM:

Molybdenite and wulfenite are the main ores

occurring in quartz veins in granitic rocks. It is

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used in making alloy steel and in valves, electric

lamps, and permanent magnets, among other
things. Major producers are USA, Canada,
Russia and Chile.
GOLD:

SILVER:
The ore minerals are stephanite, agentite,
proustite and pyrargyrite. Silver is found in the
galena ores that may have up to one per cent of
this metallic mineral. Mexico is the chief
producer of silver; other producers are Russia,
Canada, peru and Australia.

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Gold may occur in alluvial or in placer

deposits, as in California and Alaska. Or it may
occur as reefs or lodes underground, as in South
Africa. The greatest producer is South Africa,
with major mines in the Witwatersrand,
Odendaalrus and Lydenburg. Canada, Japan,
the USA, Zimbabwe and Ghana also produce
gold.

In Andhra Pradesh the Ramgiri field of

Anantapur district is the main source of gold.
Other areas are Chittoor, East Godavari, Kurnool
and Warangal districts. In Ramgiri field, the
mineralisation extends for 19 km from north to
south from Kankapuram to Jibutil.

In India, the vein gold deposits are found in

Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar,
Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu while alluvial
gold is mainly found in Bihar, Assam, Uttar
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Punjab and
Meghalaya.

The Kolar gold field has been the principal

source of gold production in India since 1871
when mining first started. It has four productive
minesNandydroog, Champion Reef, Mysore
and Ooregaum. The Champion Reef mine is the
deepest mine in the world. The Dharwar schists
on which the Kolar gold fields are situated run
in a north-south direction for 80 km. However,
the quartz veins bearing gold are confined to only
a 6-7 km section near Marikuppan. The
mineralising solutions responsible for the
development of the auriferous veins of South
India were probably derived from the magma
which gave rise to champion genesses. The Kolar
field mined by the Bharat Gold Mines Limited
has always had the highest output in India, but
it now faces closure.
In the Raichur district, the auriferous veins
occur within the schistose rocks of Dharwarian
age. There are six auriferous quartz reefs of
which the Oakley reef is the main producer. It is
worked by Hutti gold Mines Company of
Karnataka state. According to the Geological
Survey of India, the reserves in both these fields
are estimated at about 4.5 million tonnes with a
total gold content of about 45,000 kg. In addition
ore reserves of about 60,000 tonnes with 8.5 gm
per tonne have been indicated in Budini area.
New fields have been found at Kempinkote
(Hassan district), Honnali (Shimoga district),
Siddarahalli (Chikmaglur district), Bellara
(Chitradurg district) and Munglur (Gulbarga
district).

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In India, the lead-zinc ores of Zawar in

Rajasthan yield silver. Silver is derived as a byproduct in the Karnataka gold fields. The lead
ores in Andhra Pradesh (Guntur, Cuddapah,
Kurnool districts), Jharkhand (Santhal Parganas,
Singhbhum), Bihar (Bhagalpur), Gujarat
(Vadodara district), Karnataka (the district of
Bellary), Uttaranchal (Almora district),
Karnataka (the district of Bellary), Uttaranchal
(Almora district) and Jammu and Kashmir
(Baramula district) are also expected to yield
some silver.
PLATINUM:

Platinum is a rare metal, which is always

found with other rare metals allied to the
platinum group such as osmium (the heaviest
metal), palladium (of great medical importance),
iridium (used in fountain pen nibs) and rhodium
(used for plating silver to avoid tarnishing).
Canada and South Africa lead in the production
of platinum and its allied metals, followed by
Russia.
COPPER:

Copper is the most important non-ferrous

metal and was the earliest metal used by man.
In nature, copper occurs in pure form but mostly
as sulphides, oxides and carbonates. To be
economically exploitable, copper ores should
contain at least 2.5 per cent of copper. The
world's largest producers are the USA, Russia,
Chile, Zambia, Canada and Zaire.
India is deficient in copper ores and thus
depends to a large extent on imports. In India,
copper ores occur as sulphides. They occur both
in ancient crystalline and younger rock
formations including the Cuddapahs, Bijawars
and Aravallis.

[7]

Copper is mined at the Khetri complex in

Rajasthan, in which state important deposits are
found in Kho-Dhariba area. Jharkhand
(Singhbhum)
and
Andhra
Pradesh
(Agnigundala) have some deposits.

LEAD AND ZINC:

The two metals, lead and zinc, rarely occur
in native state. They generally occur in
combination with other elements. Galena is the
chief ore of lead while sphalerite or zinc blende
is the chief ore of zinc. These sulphide ore
minerals of lead and zinc are formed due to
contact metasomatism, replacement by
hydrothermal solutions. Galena is found in veins
in limestones, calcareous slates and sandstones
and occasionally in metamorphic rocks or in
association with volcanic rocks, while zinc
blende or sphalerite is found in veins in
associaiton with galena, chalcopyrites, iron
pyrites and other sulphide ores. The chief rock
types associated with the sulphide ores of lead
and zinc are pyrite, slate, dolomite and quartz.

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In Andhra Pradesh, the important copper

belt lies in Agnigundala in the Guntur district.
The mineral here is associated with quartzites
and dolomites interbanded with phyllites and
shales. The principal deposits are around
Bondalamottu, Nallankonda and Dhukonda.
Copper ore also occurs in Ganikalava,
Gumankonda and Somalapilli areas (Kurnool
district), Garimanipenta (Nellore district) and
Zangamraju Varikunta-Chelima areas.

and metamorphic rocks. Nearly 80 per cent of

the world's supplies come from alluvial deposits.
Malaysia is the world's leading producer and
exporter of tin. Other producers are China,
Indonesia, Thailand, Nigeria, Zaire, Bolivia and
Australia.

In Jharkhand, in the Singhbhum district, a

copper-bearing belt of about 140 km occurs. Here
the copper ore occurs as veins in the country rock
consisting of micaschists, quartz schists, chlorite
schists, biotite schists, granite and granite
gneisses. The veins are best developed along a
zone of overthrust where they form well-defined
lodes as seen at Rakha mines, Mosabani and
Dhobani. Individual lodes normally consist of
one or more veins one inch to two feet thick, the
average being 5 to 7 inches.
In Rajasthan, the Khetri copper deposit is
one of the important copper deposits in the
country. This belt has richly mineralised sections.
Important deposits are in the Khi-Dhariba area
(Alwar district), and the Khetri-Singhana
(Jhujhunu district)--specifically at Kolihan and
Mandhan, Berkhara mines and Akhwali mines.
The copper ore bodies occur in phyllites, states
and schists of the Ajabgarh series (Delhi system)
as irregular stringers, fillings of schistose planes
and fractures and disseminations in the host
rock. The mineralisation in Rajasthan copper belt
is epigenetic and seems to have occurred under
belt is epigenetic and seems to have occurred
under mesothermal conditions from post-Delhi
(erinpura) granite magma.
Other important copper deposits of the
country are in Himachal PradeshKangra-Kulu
valley; MysoreChittaldrug, Hassan, Bellary
districts; West BengalDarjeeling, Jalpaiguri
districts; SikkimRangpo and Dickchu deposits
which are found to occur in association with
metamorphic rocks.
TIN:
The main ore of tin is cassiterite or tinstore
with about 75 per cent of tin. It occurs in igneous

[8]

Major producers of lead are the USA, Russia,

Australia, Canada, Peru and Bulgaria. Leading
producers of zinc are Canada, Russia, Peru,
Australia and the USA.

The most important of the lead-zinc deposits

of economic value in India is the Zawar deposit
of Udaipur district of Rajasthan. In the Zawar
area, the Mochia Magra, Baroi Magra and
Zawar-Mala hills contain most extensive
deposits. The Zawar mine is located in Mochia
Magra hills Lead and zinc occur at these places.
Mineralisations of lead and zinc occur at these
places. Mineralisations of lead and thin and
parallel tabular masses. Galena is generally
concentrated in some particular portions of the
deposits but the sphalerite is more or less evenly
distributed. Lead-copper ore deposits occur in
Agnigundala area of Guntur district of Andhra
Pradesh. There is a lead-zinc-copper belt in
Ambamata Devi area of Gujarat and Rajasthan.
The Sargipalli area in the district of Sundergarh
(Orissa) has deposits of these metals.
BAUXITE:

The only ore from which aluminium is

extracted is called 'bauxite', which is not a
mineral but and aggregate chiefly of gibbsite,
boehmite and a little of kaolinite. The largest
quantities of bauxite are found in the tropical

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and sub-tropical latitudes. Australia, Jamaica

and Guinea are the major suppliers. India is fifth
in world bauxite resources.
Bauxite is associated with laterite rocks
occurring extensively as blankets or cappings
either on the plateau or hill ranges of peninsular
India or in certain low level laterites in the inland
area or in coastal tracts of the country. It is a
result of the residual weathering process which
leads to leaching of the silica.

In Karnataka the principal deposits occur in

the Belgaum district near Sidhpahar, Jamboti and
Betul and in the Magalgad plateau, near
Kasarsoda range of hills, Kalanandigarh area
and the Boknur-Navge ridge.
In Orissa, bauxite deposits occur in
Panchpatmalli hills in Koraput. Other deposits
are Bahlimali Parbat, Kalkahal, Kutrumali, etc.
Large deposits are also found in the Eastern Ghat
tract in Koraput district. Bauxite reserves have
also been discovered in Gandhamardhan plateau
of Sambalpur and Bolangir districts.

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In Jharkhand, extensive deposits occur in

Khuria highlands in Ranchi and Palamau
districts. The important deposits are located at
Bagrupahar, Seradang, Pabhrapat Jardapahar,
Maidanpat and Manduapat. In the Palamau
district, the Netrahat plateau is important. Here
the important deposits are located at Jamiropat,
Ranchonghat, Orsapat and Joradumar.

eastern portion of the Nilgiri hills; plateau region

of the Palni and Kodaikanal hills in he Madurai
district; Shevaroy hills near Yarcand in the Salem
district; and in parts of the Kollaimalai hill.

In Madhya Pradesh and Chhatisgarh, there

are three important areas: (a) the Amarkantak
plateau region comprising Sarguja, Raigarh and
Bilaspur districts; (b) the Maikal range of hills in
the Bilaspur, Shahdol, Durg Mandla and
Balaghat districts; (c) the Katni area of Jabalput
district.

In Andhra Pradesh, bauxite has been

discovered in the Anantgiri plateau. There are
12 such blocks in the area. The Gallikonda area
in Visakhapatnam district has also shown a
reserve.

Other areas of occurrences are in Jammu and

Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh.
URANIUM:

In Bilaspur district bauxite deposits are

located on Phutka Pahar, Laddhi Pahar,
Mahadeo Pahar and several other hilltops. In
Shahdol and Mandla districts bauxite is found
in Umergaon, Jamuna Dadar, Dadar, Rukti
Dadar and Nanku Dadar areas. Bauxite deposits
segregated in the laterite cappings are located
in Jashpur in Khuria highlands north of Kurki,
Kesmanda, Chandra and Rahbon Danwahi.

The main ores are uranite and pitchblende.

A Geiger counter, which measures radioactivity,
is used to locate deposits. Occurrences of
uranium ores are rare and localised.
Concentrations are generally low, so that
extraction is both difficult and costly.

In Gujarat, important deposits occur in

laterite cappings in plateau basalts, lying
between the Deccan Traps and the Gaj beds for
about 48 km between Gulf of Kutch and the
Arabian Sea through Bhavnagar, Junagarh
districts and around Bhatla, Nandana, Rann,
Mewasa, Habardi, Kenedi, Lamba and Virpur.
Occurrences have also been reported in Mandvi,
Lakhpat, Nakharana and Bhujr, and Anjar
talukas of Kutch district.

In India, uranium occurs at Pichli near

Abrakipahar in Gaya district (Bihar), near
Sunrgai and Dalbhum area of Singhbhum
district (Jharkhand). Jaduguda is the only mine
worked at present. In Rajasthan, it is found in
Bisundi area of Ajmer district and Umra near
Udaipur. In Andhra Pradesh it occurs in Nellore
district in Sankara mine. In Karnataka it is found
at Yedyur near Bangalore. Uranium has also
been found at Domiasat.

In Maharashtra, some of the deposits are

found in plateaus such as Udgiri, Dhangarvadi,
Radhanagri and Iderganj in Kolahpur district.

MICA:

In Tamil Nadu, bauxite deposits are found

in four areas, namely, Kotagiri and Curzon
valley areas and near Ootacamund in the

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Canada, the USA and South Africa are

major producers.

The term 'mica' covers a large group of rockforming minerals. Natural mica forms hexagonal
crystals of varying size. Owing to its excellent
dielectric strength, low loss power factor and
insulating properties, mica is one of the

[9]

Other places where mica is found are in

Madhya Pradesh, Mimachal Pradesh, Assam
and West Bengal.
DIAMOND:
Diamond is not a metal, but a precious stone.
Diamonds occur as scattered crystals in an
igneous rock called kimberlite which forms
pipes, dykes or volcanic plugs deep
underground. Diamonds also come from alluvial
sources, e.g. in Brazil or Zaire. Zaire is the leading
producer (by quantity) but mostly produces bort.
Botswana and South Africa are leading
gemstone producers. The world's greatest
diamond cutting centres are Antwerp,
Amsterdam and The Hague.

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indispensable minerals used in electrical and

electronics industries. The main mica minerals
are muscovite, biotite, phlogopite. Mica minerals
occur in igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic
rocks formed under different geological
conditions. While muscovite occurs in
pegmatites of acidic nature, phlogopite mica is
restricted to basic pegmatite. Commercial biotite
is found to occur mostly in biotite schists. India
is the most important mica producing country
in the world and it supplies 80 per cent of the
world requirements of block mica. The
occurrence of muscovite mica is associated with
the rocks of the Archaean age. It occurs in the
Koderma mica belt in Jharkhand, the Nellore
mica belt in Andhra Pradesh, and the Rajastan
mica belt.

The Koderma mica belt stretches from the

Gaya district through Hazaribagh and Monghyr
to the Bhagalpur district. In this mica belt, the
deposits of mica are associated with the
pegmatite veins which traverse through the
schistose and gneissose country rocks. The blocks
of muscovite which occur within the Bihar mica
belt are generally reddish in colour and are
therefore known as 'Ruby mica'.
The Nellore mica belt stretches between
Gudur and Sangam. The country rocks are
Archaean mica schist and hornblende schist
which are intruded by pegmatite veins. Here
muscovites are light green in colour.

Nearly 20 per cent of the Indian production

comes from the Rajasthan belt. Here the micabearing pegmatites are intrusive mainly into
rocks of the gneissic complex and the Aravalli
schists.
In Karnataka the deposits occur mainly in
Mysore and Hassan districts, at Tagdur,
Vadesamudra, Undavadi and Mundoor. The
quality of the mica is poor.

In Tamil Nadu few occurrences that have

been re-corded are in Tirunelveli district near
Kovilpatti in Coimbatore district (in
Vairemanlam, Munampalli, Sevattampalaiyam),
in Tiruchirappalli district (in Kurumbapatti,
Pallipati Kadavur and Mungilmalai) and also in
Madurai and Kanyakumari districts.

Kerala too accounts for mica occurrences in

Alleppey district at Maulhupa and Kulanda and
in Quilion district around Ranni. The important
producers are Punalur and Nayyur.

[10]

In India, the main diamond bearing areas are

Panna belt in Madhya Pradesh, Raipur in
Chhattisgarh, Munimadugu-Banganapalle
conglomerate in Kurnool district, Wajrakarur
kimberlite pipe in Anantapur district and the
gravels of Krishna river basic in Andhra Pradesh.
Reserves have been estimated only in Panna
belt and Krishna gravels.
ASBESTOS:

Its main ore is chryoslite. France and Russia

are major producers.
SULPHUR:

Gases emitted from volcanoes are highly

sulphuruous and sulphur is thus deposited in
volcanic regions. It is also obtained from iron
pyrites (iron sulphide). Sulphur comes mainly
from Poland, the USA and Mexico.
SALT:

Halite or sodium chloride is common salt. It

occurs as a sedimentary rock as a result of
evaporation of sea-water or lakes in the past.
Major producers of rock salt are USA and China.

In India three-fourths of salt production

comes from the sea. Mithapur, Chharvada,
Jamnagar, Dharsana, Bulsar and other areas in
the Gujarat region produce more than half of
the country's total salt every year. The saltproducing centres in Maharashtra include Uran,
Bhayandar and Bhandup. Salt is also obtained
from coastal tracts in Goa; Kerala; Karnataka;
Cuddalore, Adrampatnam, Madras and
Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, which produces about
16 per cent of the country's total annual

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production; Pennuguduru and Nanpadu in

Andhra; and Kolkata.
In the north-western region, Rajasthan is the
main salt-producing state. The Sambhar lake
(Jaipur district) is the largest and the most
important salt-producing area in India. Areas
in the district of Jodhpur (Didwana, Pachbhadra
and Phalodi) and Bikaner district (Lonkarasar)
also yield salt.

Peat is the first stage of coal formation and

varies considerably in extent and thickness. It
has a high percentage of moisture and volatile
matter. Carbon makes up only about one-third
of its bulk. Fenno - Scandinavia is the site of the
world's main deposits of peat.

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Drang, Guma and other parts of Mandi

(Himachal Pradesh) are centres where rock salt
is mined.

complex process of coal formation involves

physical and bacteriological agencies. Favourable
climatic conditions for coal formation are mild
temperature to sub-tropical climate with welldistributed moderate to heavy rainfall.

POTASH:

Main sources of potash are Canada,

Germany, USA.
PHOSPHATES:

Phosphates occur as rocks in sedimentary

sequences or as phosphatic nodules. Another
source is bird droppings or guano. Main sources
of phosphate rock is the USA and the main
source of guano is the coast of Peru.
KAOLIN:

Kaolin or china clay is a fine clay formed by

the alteration of granite by metamorphism.
Kaolin is produced for local use in many parts
of the world. USA leads in production.
COAL:

A principal mineral fuel, coal is a

combustible, solid stratified rock of organic and
mineral matter. The organic matter constitutes
carbon (60 to 90 per cent), hydrogen (one to 12
per cent) and also small amounts of phosphorus
and sulphur. Coal occurs as a sedimentary rock
in association with carbonaceous shale,
sandstone and even fireclay in a regular
succession and in repetitions. Gondwana coal is
found as drifted deposits and tertiary coal occurs
as in situ deposits.

Coal originates from the accumulation of

vegetable matter in swampy areas on broad
delta, coastal plains and basin lowlands. The
vegetable matter is subjected to geological
processes that effect physical and chemical
changes. The changes can be seen in the
darkening of colour, increase in compactness,
hardness and carbon content, and decrease in
volatility and moisture. The growth in situ and
drift theories explain the origin of coal. The

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Lignite is considered to be the second stage

of coal formation after peat. Its moisture content
is high (over 35 per cent), as a result of which it
gives out much smoke but little heat. It breaks
up easily when exposed to air. About 15 per cent
of the world's coal output is from lignite.
Bituminous coal is hard, black and compact.
It makes up most of the world's total coal output.
It varies in composition, in carbon content (from
40 per cent to 80 per cent), and in moisture and
volatile content (from 15 per cent to 40 per cent).
Generally, steam coal with a fixed carbon content
of more than 80 per cent, is the best of
bituminous group. The widest domestic use is of
coal with a fixed carbon content varying from
50 to 80 per cent. Coking coal is high-grade
bituminous coal with a special value because
when it is heated in coke ovens it fuses into coke,
an important ingredient in iron and steel
smelting in blast furnaces. Gas coal with a high
content of gaseous and volatile matter is best
suited for the production of coal-gas and other
chemical products.
The most extensive deposits of bituminous
coal occur in the Appalachians and the central
continental areas of the USA, the Donbas and
Kuzbas regions of the Ukraine and Russia, the
Shanxi-Shaanxi and Sichuan coalfields of China.

Anthracite, the hardest variety, ranks

highest amongst the coals. It has a carbon
content of almost 95 per cent with practically
no volatile matter. Only about 5 per cent of the
world's coal is anthracite and 50 per cent of this
comes from the Pennsylvanian fields of the USA.
Russia, Ukraine, Kirghizia, Kazakhstan account
for another 25 per cent.
In India, coal belongs to two principal
geological periods, i.e., the lower Gondwana
coals of Permian age and Tertiary coals of Eocene
to Miocene age. The greatest period of coal

[11]

formation in India is the Permian. The important

coal bearing formations are collectively known
as Damudas and belong to the lower Gondwana
system. The series of coal formations are Peatlignite-bituminous Anthracite. The lower
Gondwana coals account for more then 90 per
cent of the annual production of coal which is
generally of bituminous rank. In Tertiary
coalfields lignite predominates.

Karanpura coalfield is separated into north

and south Karanpura. The coal seams occur in
both the Barakar and Raniganj measures, the
seams being about 22 m thick.

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The Gondwana coals are largely confined to

the river valleys like those of the Damodar,
Mahanadi, Godavari, etc. Tertiary coals
principally occur in Assam, in the Himalayan
foothills of Kashmir and in Rajasthan (Palna in
Bikaner) in Eocene strata. Besides these, lignite
deposits are found to occur in the South Arcot
district of Tamil Nadu, in Kutch of Gujarat and
also in the state of Kerala. The Neyveli lignite
field of Tamil Nadu (which is of the Miocene
Age) is the largest lignite deposit in South India.

The Giridih or Karharbari coalfield lies to the

south-west of Giridih in Hazaribagh district. Its
area is 28.5 sq km and there are three main seams
of varying thicknesslower Karharbari, upper
Karharbari and the Badhua seams. The lower
Karharbari provides the finest coking coal.

Coalfields engaged in mining Gondwana

coal are to be found in the following states.

In West Bengal, the Burdwan, Bankura,

Purulia, Birbhum, Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri
districts account for large coal deposits. The state
accounts for one-fourth of the country's
production and an equal proportion of its
reserves. The chief and the largest coalfield in
India is the Raniganj coalfield.

In Jharkhand, there are several promising

coalfields in Dhanbad, Hazaribagh, Palamau
and Santhal Pargana districts. Of these, Jharia,
East and West Bokaro, Giridih, North and South
Karanpura, Ramgarh, Auranga, Hutar and
Daltonganj are the most important. Jharia
coalfield in the Dhanbad district has coals of low
volatile coking quality. That is why it has been
recognised as the store house of best
metallurgical coals in India. An average analysis
of Jharia coal shows moisture content to be 1.38
per cent, volatile matter, 21.5 per cent, fixed
carbon, 60.4 per cent and ash, 14.95 per cent.
The Bokara coalfield lies within 32 km of the
western end of the Jharia coalfield. It comprises
two parts separated by the Bokarao RiverEast
Bokaro and the West Bokaro field. The east
Bokaro coalfield coves abut 207 sq km and has
29 seams, while the west Bokaro coalfield covers
about 167 sq km and has 23 major seams. The
average sample of coal analysis shows moisture,
0-82 per cent; volatile matter, 25.56 per cent; ash,
19.38 per cent; and fixed carbon, 54.24 per cent.

[12]

The Ramgarh coalfield lies about 9 km of the

Bokaro field covering an area of about 98 sq km
mostly with Barakar measures. There are 22
seams of which four major seams have an
average thickness of 8 m each. The coal is dull in
appearance and high in ash content30.7 to
31.8 per cent.
Auranga, Hutar and Daltonganj coalfields
are of minor importance in Palamau district.
Auranga extends over 240 sq km with a seam of
13 m thickness. The coal analysis shows
moisture, 10.35 per cent; volatile matter, 26.81
per cent; fixed carbon, 26.43 per cent; and ash,
35.81 per cent. Hutar covers an area of 200 sq
km with five seams. Daltonganj field contains
Talchir seams.
In Sambalpur and Sundargarh districts of
Orissa lies the 1B river coalfield where coal occurs
in middle and lower Barakar seams of which
Rampur, Lajkuria and Gamhaera are important.
The Talcher coalfield extends from Talchir to
Rairkhol in Dhenkanal and Sambalpur districts.
In Madhya Pradesh, coal is generally found
associated with Barakar measures. The
important fields are Tatapani-Ramkola with five
main seams of inferior quality coal; Jhimilli with
five main seams of moderate coking type coal;
Pench valley with four main seams of high
volatile non-coking coal; Karhan valley with a
seam of high volatile coking coal. The Korba field
with several seams is in Chhattisgarh.

Important coal deposits in Maharashtra are

in Nagpur district at Kamptee; Chandrapur
district in Wardha valley, Warora and Ghugus;
and at Ballarpur in Yavatmal district. The
Wardha coalfield alone contains a little over 2000
million tonnes.
Warangal Khammamet, East Godavari and
West Godavari districts are the main coal-bearing
areas in Andhra Pradesh.

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Of the Tertiary variety, Makum coalfield in

Assam is the most profitable and workable
region. Workable seams are exposed along the
northern flank of the Naga-Patkoi ranges facing
Sibsagar (at Nazira) and Lakhimpur district (at
Jeypore). Other fields are Dolgrung and Nambor.
Assam coal has very low ash and high coking
qualities but the sulphur content is high and
therefore it is unsuitable for metallurgical
purposes.

Three principal grades of crude oil are

considered important, Paraffin-Base Oil with a
high percentage of the lighter hydrocarbons such
as methane gives products, such as petrol,
paraffin and high grade lubricating oils which
are commercially more valued. Asphalt-Base Oil
consists mainly of the heavier hydrocarbons with
a viscous, asphaltic base. Mixed-Based Oil is an
intermediate group with mixed properties of the
lighter and heavier oils. It has use in lubricants
and fuel oils.

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In the closely associated Balyong, Doigring

and Waimong fields of Meghalaya, coal seams
are high. In Balphakram-Pendeng area eight
seams have been recorded in the Chatmang and
Balphakram hills with a reserve of 32 million
tonnes of good quality coal.

above the reservoir bed. A non-permeable layer

must occur above the servoir bed. A favourable
structure must exist.

The upper Assam belt extends into the

Namchick-Namphuk coalfields of Tirap district
of Arunachal Pradesh. In this coalfield, coal is
generally high in volatility and in sulphur
content. The Jhanzi-Disai coal belt and Barjan
coalfield of Nagaland and Dilli-Jaipur of upper
Assam also belong to the same belt.

India at present is the fifth largest producer

of coal in the world. Coal is also India's largest
mineral resource.
PETROLEUM:

The word 'petroleum' has been derived from

the world 'petra', which means rock, and 'oleum'
which means oil. Thus 'petroleum' means 'rock,
and 'oleum' which means oil. Thus 'petroleum'
means rock, and 'oleum' which means oil. Thus
'petroleum' means 'rock-oil'. It is one of the
important mineral fuels and is a complex
mixture of hydrocarbon compounds with minor
amounts of impurities like nitrogen, sulphur and
oxygen. The liquid petroleum is called crude oil,
petroleum gas is called natural gas and the semisolid to solid forms of petroleum are known as
asphalt, tar, pitch, bitumen, etc.

For petroleum to accumulate in commercial

quantities in an area, the oil must originate in a
source bed. A marine shale, once a black mud
rich in organic compound, is thought to be a
common source rock. The oil then migrates to
permeable reservoir rocks after travelling for long
distances both vertically and horizontally. Te
source beds tend to lack the permeability
necessary for profitable extraction of the oil. A
non-permeable layer must occur above the
reservoir bed. A non-permeable layer must occur

Chronicle IAS Academy

Over 75 per cent of the world's supply of

crude oil comes from three major areas: North
America, the West Asian states, Russia and
Azerbaijan.
Saudi Arabia has the largest reserves
followed by Iraq and the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia is the leading producer followed
by the Commonwealth of Independent States
and USA.

India's most important oil-bearing area in

the eastern part of the Himalayas is Assam. The
oil-bearing belt runs from extreme north-east of
Assam to the eastern border of the Brahmaputra
and Surma valley. The existence of oil in the hills
of upper Assam was known as early as 1825,
but drilling of oil started only in 1866 following
the recommendations of the Geological Survey
of India (GSI) in 1865. During 1866-68 several
shallow wells were drilled near Makum by
Mckellop Stewart and Company. It was the
discovery of the Digboi oilfields, however, which
marks a landmark in the development of India's
sources of oil.
In India, the Digboi oilfield, situated in
Lakhimpur district of upper Assam, it is the
biggest oilfield in India. Digboi area raises about
4 lakh tonnes of crude annually. Tipam
sandstone of Miopliocene age is the oil bearing
formation.

Naharkatiya oilfield is situated 32 km away

from Digboi. This field was discovered in 1955
by Assam Oil Company. Its reserve is estimated
to be about 5 million tonnes. Naharkatiya is the
second largest oilfield in India. The oil bearing
formation is the Barail series of Oligocene age.
Moran, about 40 km south-west of Digboi,
Bappapung, Hausanpung, Hugirijang also have

[13]

oilfields. The search for oil in the Surma valley

(Cachar district) dates back to 1910. In 1910 the
Badarpur Oil Company was formed to work the
Badarpur oilfield. In Surma valley, some oil of
poor quality is found in Badarpur, Masimpur
and Patharia. In 1961 oil was discovered at
Rudrasgar near Nunmati.

as also been discovered in Punjab (Ferozepur

district), West Bengal (Midnapore district),
Jammu and Kashmir (in parts of MausarMaradpur) and Tamil Nadu (Thanjavur and
Chinglepet districts).

In Gujarat, the Cambay basin is the site of

the main oil bearing sands of Oligocene age. Here
a majority of the wells are only gas-producing.
The other oilfields of importance are Kalol
oilfield, Nawagam and Sanand oilfield.

Dolomite:

Some Other Minerals of India:

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Dolomite is a double carbonate of magnesium

and calcium found in Bihar and Jharkhand
(Singhbhum and Shahabad districts); Tamil
Nadu (Trinelveli, Salem districts and in coastal
areas near Tuticorin); Orissa (Birmatrapur,
Bildih, Khatepur and Hathibri in Sundargarh
district, Sulai and other areas in Sambalpur
district and Koraput district); Chhattisgarh
Kodwa-Mohbatta in Durg district and Hirri,
Chatane, Dhurarbhatta, Baraduar and Atta in
Bilaspupr); some hills in Himachal Pradesh; and
Vadodara and Bhavnagar districts in Gujarat.

The Ankaleshwar oilfield is the most

important oilfield discovered so far in Gujarat.
The producing sands are of Eocene age. This field
was discovered in 1961.

In Maharashtra, about 184 km off Mumbai

in the Arabian Sea, a huge oil deposit, known as
Bombay High, was struck (in 1974) in limestone
rocks of Miocene age. Bombay High (Ratnagiri
district) is the most productive oilfield and has a
reserve of 5 crore tonnes of oil. It has an area of
2 thousand sq km. While the output of
conventional oilfields has increased only
marginally over the past 14 years, Bombay High
has accounted for the bulk of the higher
production. During 1978-79, the work on the
laying of sub-sect pipeline from Bombay High to
Uran and transfer line from Uran to Trombay
was completed. Since 1978, oil and gas have
started to flow through these pipelines.
In the south, the Cauvery, the Krishna and
the Godavari basins have oil reserves.

A number of potential oil bearing fields have

been discovered in the states of Tripura, Punjab,
Nagaland, Gujarat, West Bengal, and Jammu
and Kashmir.

Steatite:

Steatite (also sandstone or talc), a hydrous

silicate of magnesium, is found in association
with dolomitic lime-stone and basic igneous rock
material. Rajasthan has the largest steatite
reserves.

Bhilwara, Jaipur and Udaipur districts yield

more than four-fifths of the state's total
production. Other districts living steatite reserves
are Alwar, Sawai Madhopur and Dungarpur.
The steatite reserves in Andhra Pradesh are
associated with metamorphosed magnesium
limestone. They are found in the districts of
Kurnool, Cuddapah, Anantapur, Chittoor.

NATURAL GAS:

In Jharkhand, steatite is found in the districts

of Singhbum, Hazaribagh, Dhanbad and
Ranchi.

Most of the natural gas is found in

association with crude oil. It is obtained as a byproduct from petroleum refineries. The gasfield
at Cambay (Gujarat) as the only non-associated
source of natural gas. The Ankleshwar gasfield,
Bombay Higha comparatively new source, and
Morah and Naharkatiya gasfields in Assam are
among the main sources. It is available as
seepages in Nom-Chick, Miao Punga and
Laptang Pung in Arunachal Pradesh, areas of
the Baramura range in Tripura, and Jwalamukhi
and Kangra in Himachal Pradesh. Natural gas

Other states possessing reserves of steatite

are: Madhya Pradesh (mainly Jabalpur and
Jhabua districts); Karnataka Bellary, Shimoga,
Hassan, Bijapur, Tumkur, Mysore and South
Kanara districts); Orissa (near Tiring,
Kendumundi and Kharidamak in Mayurbhanj
district, Balasore district, and Sundargarh and
Cuttack districts); Tamil Nadu (Saleum,
Combatore, North and South Arcot, and
Tiruchirapalli districts); Gujarat (at Vartha,
Bhanta and Thuravas); Maharashtra (parts of
Ratnagiri, Bhandara and Chandrapur districts);

[14]

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West Bengal (purulia, Darjeeling and Midnapur

districts).
Limestone:
The sedimentary despoits of limestone occur
with rocks constituting calcium carbonate or
double carbonate of magnesium and calcium, or
both. Phosphorous, sulphur, alumina and silica
may also be found.

Magnesite:
It is an important ore mineral of magnesium.
It is a refractory mineral. About two-thirds of
India's total magnesite reserves are located in
Salem district of Tamil Nadu and over a quarter
in Almora district of Uttaranchal. Karnataka,
Bihar and Rajasthan have small reserves.

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In Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh,

limestone deposits are found in Katni and JukehiKeymore in the district of Jabalpur, Alaktara in
Bilaspur district, and in Raipur, Rajgarh, Bastar,
Durg, Betul and Sagar districts. Deposits of
cement and flux grade are found in the district
of Rewa. Damoh district has deposits of blast
furnace grade.

The Khasi and Jaintia hills in Meghalaya,

Nowgong and Sibsagar districts in Assam,
Shahabad, Palamau, Ranchi, Hazaribagh and
Singhbhum districts in Bihar, Ahmednagar,
Yavatmal, Chandrapur and Nanded districts in
Maharastra are other important areas bearing
limestone deposits.

In Andhra Pradesh the districts of Guntur,

Krishna, Cuddapah, Khammam, Kurnool,
Nalgonda and Godavari possess some of the
major deposits.
In Tamil Nadu, important reserves of mainly
cement grade limestone are found in
Tiruchirapalli, Coimbatore, Madurai, and
Ramnathapuram districts. Salem district has flux
grade deposits as well. Lime can be obtained
from the limestone reserves in Tirunelveli, South
Arcot and Thanjavur.

In Karnataka flux grade limestone deposits

are dispersed in the districts of Shimga, Belgaum
and Bijapur. Mysore, Gulbarga, Tumkur and
chitradurg districts have also some deposits.
In Orissa important deposits of mainly flux
grade limestone occur at Hathbari, Birmitrapur,
Amghat,
Pagposh,
Purnapani
and
Katopuryheria in Sundargarh district. Areas of
Kalahandi and Sambalpur districts also yield
limestone.
In Gujarat the districts of Junagarh (near
Dari, Veraval, Patan, Grokhundi, Savni and
Sutrapara), Banaskanta (near Pasuval, Khunia
and Diwania), Sabarkanta (near Posina), and
Khera (near Balasinar) have high grade
limestone reserves. Much of this limestone can
be used for manufacturing cement.
In Rajasthan, cement grade limestone occurs
in Jaipur, Ajmer, Sawai Madhopur, Pali,
Jodhpur, Jhunjhunu, Sirohi, Bundi and
Banswara districts.

Chronicle IAS Academy

The principal magnesite deposits in Tamil

Nadu are found in the chalk hills area in Salem
district. The deposits occur in regular veins in
intrusive ultrabasic rocks. In Almora district of
Uttaranchal good quality magnesite occurs in
narrow bands of variable thickness in massive
dolomite between Someshwar and Bageshwar
near Agar, Chahana, Dewaldhar and Nail.
Occurrences of magnesite have also been
reported from Jhiroli, Pagankhol, Ariapani,
Bhurgaon, Changdog, Boragar, Gahar Rithait,
Satislang, Phadiari Jakhera, Tachhiri, Tanga
Durai, Salia, Rafalkhet and Chamagaon, all
situated in Chamoli district.
Kyanite :

It is a member of the aluminium-silicate

group of minerals which includes andalusite,
sillimanie and kyaniteall refractory minerals.
They are all metamorphic minerals. India has
the richest deposits of kyanite in the world.
Important deposits of kyanite occur in the
Singhbhum district of Jharkhand along a belt 80
miles in length, stretching east along the western
part of Seraikela through parts of northern
Singhbhum and Kharasawan and into
Dhalbhum. The Lapsa Buru kyanite deposits, the
largest kyanite deposits in the world, are situated
in this belt.
In Maharashtra large deposits occur in
Bhandara district in Pipalgaon-Dahegaon-Padri
area where the estimated reserves are about 100
million tonnes.

In Karnataka it occurs in Hassan, Mysore

and Chitradurg districts. TIF important
producers are Kudinirkatte, Dodderi, KamasaMudram, Melkoppa and Kadmane localities, etc.

[15]

Some pockets of kyanite also occur in Ajmer,

Bhilwara, Dungarpura and Banswara districts
of Rajasthan, in Darjeeling and Purulia districts
(West Bengal), Mahasu district (Himachal
Pradesh), Coimbatore district (Tamil Nadu) and
Mahendragarh district (Haryana).

to the Tertiary rock formations in the Jodhpur

region. Beds of gypsum half-to-two metres thick
occur at several places around the great Indian
desert of Rajasthan, particularly in the districts
of Bikaner, Jodhpur, Barmar, Churu, Nagaur,
Pali, Jaisalmer and Shri Ganganagar.

Graphite:

Important deposits of gypsum are found in

Tamil Nadu in Coimbatore near Annuppapatti,
Andiyur, Venkatapuram, Pusaripatti, etc.,
where the percentage grade is 88 to 92 per cent.
In Tiruchirapalli district, gypsum occurs as thin
irregular veins in the clays and limestones of the
Uttatur and Trichinopoly stages of the
Creataceous system.

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Graphite (also black lead or plumbago) is

composed of mainly carbon. It has impurities
silica and silicatesas well. It occurs along with
metamorphic rocks which abound in garnets and
sillimanite. Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Bihar
have good deposits.
In Andhra Pradesh deposits around
Peddanakonda have a fixed carbon content of
40 to 65 per cent. Important areas include east
Godavari and west Godavari districts (areas like
Rampa Chodavaram, Reddi Bodiar and
Haripuram), Krishna district, Khamamet district,
Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Buderu and
Srikakulam.
In Orissa, graphite deposits of 55-60 per cent
carbon occur at Babupali, Dengsurgi, Biliangora,
Bughmunda, Komna and other parts of
Kalahandi district; Titilagarh, Darpagarh,
Munbahal, Belagaon, Patnagarh and other areas
of Bolangir district; near Sargipalli, Padampur
and Rampur in Sambalpur district; Majikelam
arugali, Karrigudda and other parts of Koraput;
and in Phulbani district.
In Jharkhand, deposits with a carbon content
of about 50 per cent occur around Rajhara and
Khandih.

In Tamil Nadu, graphite reserves are located

in Tirunelveli district, Madurai district,
Arumanallur,
Todagamalai
and
Kandawawamipuram in Kanyakumari district
and near Poovandi, Arsanur and Kirnur in
Ramanathapuram.
In Karnataka, deposits occur in
Chikbanavur, Arsikere and Holavanballi areas
and in the Kolar belt in Bangarpet.
Gypsum:

It is a hydrated calcium sulphate which is

usually found in beds or banks in the
sedimentary rocks such as limestones,
sandstones and shales.
The most important sources of gypsum are
located in the state of Rajasthan and are confined

[16]

In Uttaranchal, gypsum occurs in several

localities as at Lachmanijhula, around Kharari
Chatti, Sera Narendranagar and Gughthani in
Garhwal district and near Dhapila, Bhatta,
Khalagaon, Sahashradhara, Nainital posits have
been reported near Gonti and Parsua in Jhansi
district of Uttar Pradesh and near Purune in
Hamirpur district of Himachal Pradesh.
In the district of Barmula and Doda of Jammu
and Kashmir, rich deposits occur as lenticular
bands in the Precambrian Salakhal schists or
with nummulitic lime stones of Eocene age.

In Himachal Pradesh, deposits associated

with known limestone and dolomite and also
with the Subathu series have been reported from
Chamba, Mahasu and Sirmur districts.

In Gujarat, gypsum occurs in the Saurashtra

area especially in Halar and districts of
Bhavanagar, Gohilwad, Jamnagar, Jungadh and
Kutch covering an area of 518sq km. Important
occurrences are in Jamnagar district at Rana
Virpur and Bhatis.
Thorium:

Thorium minerals consists of thorianite(388) per cent of thorium), allanite (3 per cent of
thorium) and monazite (up to 18 per cent of
thorium).
In India thorium minerals are found mostly
in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand,
Rajasthan, Orissa and Kerala.

India possesses the greatest reserves of

monazite known in the world. The monazite
reserves of Kerala have been estimated at 2.5
million tonnes from which 1.5 lakh tonnes of
thorium are available.

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Beryllium: Beryllium is obtained from beryl,

which is found in association with felspar and
mica in pegmatities. It occurs in Rajasthan,
Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Sikkim and
Kashmir. Beryllium is very useful as a moderator
in atomic reactors.

exportation or sale for export of any

product. This provision covers quotas and
other similar measures that establish
quantitative limitations on imports or
exports.

Norms Related To Trade in Mineral

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To the extent that mineral resources may be

traded is covered by the obligations contained
in the WTO agreements relating to trade in
goods. WTO rules generally do not regulate
natural resources before they are extracted or
harvested.

Article XIII of the GATT states that no

prohibition or restriction shall be applied
by any WTO member on the importation
of any product of the territory of any other
member or on the exportation of any
product destined for the territory of any
other member, unless the importation of the
like product of all third countries or the
exportation of the like product to all third
countries is similarly prohibited or
restricted.

WTO rules related to Mineral trade:

Article I of the GATT sets out the mostfavoured-nation principle, one of the
fundamental obligations of the multilateral
trading system. This provision prohibits a
WTO member from treating the products
originating in or destined for another
member less favourably than the like
products originating in or destined for any
other country (including non-WTO
members). Thus, WTO member A cannot
subject imports of coal from WTO member
B to a higher tariff than imports of coal
from WTO member C. Export taxes and
other export regulations are also subject to
the obligations in Article I, even if such
measures are not prohibited under Article
XI. This means that WTO member A cannot
subject its exports to WTO member B to a
higher export tax than it applies to exports
to WTO member C.

Article II of the GATT 1994 prohibits WTO

members from applying ordinary customs
duties on the importation of a product that
are higher than the rate specified in their
schedules of commitments. Through
successive rounds of trade negotiations, the
number of products subject to tariff bindings
has increased and the levels at which tariffs
are bound have been progressively brought
down. Members are also prohibited from
applying any other duties or charges on
the importation of a product, unless
specified in the schedule of commitments.

Article XI of the GATT 1994 provides that

no prohibitions or restrictions, other than
duties, taxes or other charges, shall be
applied by any WTO member on the
importation of any product or on the

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In some circumstances, subsidies can

exacerbate the over-exploitation of scarce
natural resources. The WTO includes
important disciplines on the use of subsidies
by WTO members. Subsidies to nonagricultural goods are regulated under the
SCM Agreement. The SCM Agreement
defines a subsidy as a financial
contribution by a government or any public
body within the territory of a member that
confers a benefit. A financial contribution
is deemed to exist where (i) a government
practice involves a direct transfer of funds;
(ii) government revenue that is otherwise
due is foregone; (iii) a government provides
goods or services other than general
infrastructure; or (iv) a government entrusts
or directs a private body to carry out one
or more of the types of functions listed in
(i) to (iii). A WTO member that is affected
by subsidies granted by another member
can challenge those subsidies in the WTO
dispute
settlement
mechanism.
Alternatively, the affected member can
apply countervailing duties to the
subsidized imports if it shows that they
cause or threaten to cause injury to its
domestic industry.

Trade in natural resources can support

economic development, as it enables resourcerich countries to export resources and raise
revenues. If done to high environmental and
social standards, trade can thereby contribute
to sustainable development of poor countries.
But the current trade system reinforces unequal
levels of resource consumption by shifting
resources from poorer low consuming countries
to richer, high consuming countries.

[17]

suspect another country of gaining an unfair

trade advantage through subsidies. The United
States Commerce Department has set a
preliminary import duty of nearly 286 percent
on a circular welded carbon-quality steel pipe
from India to offset government subsidies. India
had "requested consultations" with the United
States over U.S. countervailing duties.
India claimed that Washington had imposed
the countervailing duty because a portion of the
iron ore used to produce the pipes came from
India's top iron ore miner NMDC (NMDC.NS),
a state-run firm that supplies steelmakers such
as Tata (TISC.NS), Jindal (JNSP.NS) and Essar.
But the U.S. argument was that "because NMDC
is a public sector undertaking and therefore
implicitly subsidising a private-sector enterprise.
However to counter it, Indian side replied that
Indian iron ore prices were determined by the
domestic market so, there is no subsidy.

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Industrialised countries in Europe and North

America, but also in Asia, largely export
manufactured products with a high value added.
Many developing countries, on the other hand,
continue to rely strongly on the export of raw
materials such as agricultural products, minerals
and fossil fuels. Exporting manufactured
products usually generates higher profits
compared to export of commodities.
Furthermore, environmental pressures related to
extraction and processing of resources are high
One of the major challenges that are crucial
in the context of relatively backward economies
is that the macroeconomic policies of these
countries are not always proportionate to utilize
the gains from world trade. International trade
can be beneficial if the gains derived from it can
be distributed evenly across the different layers
of the society. Here lies the importance of trickledown effect.
Domestic trade involves exchange of factors
of production at the regional level; whereas
international trade ensures greater mobility of
latest technology and goods and services across
the nations. World trade helps the developing
countries to have ready access to the modern
techniques of production. However, the
challenge here is to use these techniques in an
efficient manner. The industrial setup and social
infrastructure need to be developed as per the
global standard to optimize the benefits from
international trade.

There are instances of African nations, which

have failed to utilize the gains from trade due to
inappropriate macroeconomic setups. Before
opening up the economy, the backward nations
need to safeguard the interests of the domestic
entrepreneurs. The liberalization policies need
to be taken up gradually so as to help the infant
industries face the challenges of the changing
economic scenario.
So the challenges before international trade
may arise from different fronts. The countries
involved in world trade need to adopt
proportionate policy measures to make use of
the gains from trade for the overall development
of their economies.
Case study: India launches WTO case against
U.S. steel duties
Countries impose countervailing duties punitively high import tariffs - when they

[18]

Last October the United States sent the WTO

a list of 50 Indian government measures that it
said amounted to unfair subsidies that had not
been notified, as required by the WTO, and
threatened to slap duties on them if India did
not notify them promptly. Included on the list
were loans from India's Steel Development Fund
(SDF), with the 2010-2011 annual report of the
Indian Ministry of Steel cited as evidence. The
ministry's report said the SDF was providing
financial assistance for research and
development and 64 projects had been approved
in 2010, at a cost of 4.42 billion Indian rupees,
including 2.78 billion rupees from the fund. The
SDF had already paid out 1.39 billion rupees.
US files dispute against India on solar panel
products

The United States, on February 6, 2013,

notified the WTO Secretariat of a request for
consultations with India on certain measures of
India relating to domestic content requirements
under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar
Mission (NSM) for solar cells and solar modules.
The United States claims that India requires solar
power developers to buy and use domestic solar
cells and solar modules in order to benefit from
participating in the Jawaharlal Nehru NSM
programme and to enter into contracts under
the NSM programme or with the National Power
Company. According to the United States, the
benefits for solar power developers, contingent
on their purchase and use of domestic solar cells

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and solar modules, would include subsidies

through guaranteed, long-term electricity rates.
The request for consultations formally initiates
a dispute in the WTO. Consultations give the
parties an opportunity to discuss the matter and
to find a satisfactory solution without
proceeding further with litigation. After 60 days,
if consultations have failed to resolve the dispute,
the complainant may request adjudication by a
panel.

Nigeria is the largest oil producer in africa

and 11thlargest in the world. In 2004, 17% of all
Nigerian oilexports - more than two million
tonnes - went to the European Union. Crude oil
production in 2004 was 2.5 million barrels per
day, of which an average of one million barrels
per day were produced by shell, making shell
by far the biggest oil company in Nigeria. The
country has significant oil reserves and even
greater gas reserves. However, most Nigerians
have not benefited from these resources and
Nigeria is now one of the poorest countries in
the world.

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Issue of overconsumption of resources

considered the breadbasket of Nigeria because

of its rich ecosystems, a place where people
cultivated fertile farmlands and benefitted from
abundant fisheries. In the southern part of the
delta lies Ogoniland, where half a million Ogoni
people live.

The amount of natural resources extracted

for the production of goods and services is
steadily increasing. Almost half of global
resource extraction takes place in Asia, followed
by North America with almost 20% and Europe
and Latin America with 13% each. However,
large variations exist in natural resources
extraction per capita: on average, an inhabitant
of Australia extracts around 10 times more
resources than inhabitants of Asia or Africa.
Increasing resource extraction leads to growing
environmental and social problems, often worst
in poor countries in Africa, Latin America and
Asia. In 1980, the world economy extracted
almost 40 billion tonnes. Up to 2005, this number
grew to 58 billion tonnes, an increase of almost
50%.
Resource extraction has increased in all major
categories: biomass, fossil fuels, metal ores and
industrial and construction minerals. Between
1980 and 2005, the extraction of gas, sand and
gravel almost doubled, and nickel ore extraction
tripled. For some of the biotic resources, such as
fish, the signs of overuse can already be observed
catch rates have been declining over the past
10 years.
The extraction and processing of natural
resources is often very intensive in the use of
materials, energy, water and land. These
activities therefore often entail environmental
problems, such as the destruction of fertile land,
water shortages or toxic pollution. Social
problems are also often linked to extraction
activities, including human rights violations,
poor working conditions and low wages.
Case study on oil extraction in Nigeria

Shell has been operating in Nigerias Niger

delta since the 1930s. Nigeria is now a
democracy, but has a long and brutal history of
military dictatorships. The Niger delta was once

Chronicle IAS Academy

Shell operates in Nigeria through the shell

petroleum development company, a joint
venture between shell and the Nigerian
government. SPDC has more than 90 oil and gas
fields spread over some 30,000 square kilometres
of oil mining leases in the Niger delta. It is a
massive operation involving a network of more
than 6,000 kilometres of flow lines and pipelines,
seven gas plants, 86 flow stations and other
facilities. Shell and other oil companies have
transformed the Niger delta into a virtual
wasteland, bearing deep scars from gas flaring
and oil spills. The population in the Niger delta
suffers from multiple health problems and the
land is heavily polluted. Gas flaring has severe
health consequences. Many scientific studies
have linked breathing particulate matter to a
series of significant health problems, including
aggravated asthma, increases in respiratory
symptoms like coughing and difficult or painful
breathing, chronic bronchitis, decreased lung
function, and premature death. This is due to
the fact that flaring emits a cocktail of toxic
substances (including sulphur dioxide, nitrogen
dioxides), carcinogenic substances (such as
benz[a]pyreneand dioxin) and unburned fuel
components (including benzene, toluene, xylene
and hydrogen sulphide).

One example of the environmental

consequences of gas flaring in the Niger delta is
acid rain. Delta residents have long complained
that their roofs have been corroded by the
composition of the rain that falls as a result of

[19]

the flaring. The primary causes of acid rain are

emissions of sulphur dioxide (sO2) and nitrogen
oxides (nOx), which combine with atmospheric
moisture to form sulphuric acid and nitric acid,
respectively. Acid rain acidifies lakes and streams
and damages vegetation. In addition, acid rain
accelerates the decay of building materials and
paints. According to the World Bank, emissions
during flaring are the major source of greenhouse
gases in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Further the Central Government while

granting mining leases has fixed extremely low
royalty rates. The mining companies have made
huge profits. For example the Central
Government has recently fixed the royalty for
iron ore at just 10 per cent of the value of the
mined iron ore after supposedly discussing with
the so-called stakeholders, namely the big mining
companies. Royalty is equally low for other major
minerals.

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In November 2005, the federal high court of

Nigeria ordered shell to immediately stop flaring
gas, in iwherekan community, delta state. The
court found gas flaring to be a gross violation
of the rights to life and dignity. Nevertheless, shell
continues the flaring.

ignored. The legal requirement under PESAA

(Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act
1996) and the Forest Rights Act for consent of
the Gram Sabha is blatantly violated. On the
contrary even where the gram Sabha has opposed
a particular project, the land is forcibly acquired
as for example in the bauxite rich tribal areas in
Vishakhapatnam district in Andhra Pradesh and
Kalahandi in Orissa.

There have been major human rights abuses

as well. On June 8 2009, shell was forced to pay
us$15.5 million to settle an embarrassing lawsuit
in the US for human rights abuses in Nigeria.
The company is also facing legal action in The
Hague concerning repeated oil spills which have
damaged the livelihoods of Nigerian fisher folk
and farmers.
Issue of denial of property rights to local people

Tribals have paid the highest price of

national development because their regions are
resource rich: 90 percent of all coal and around
50 percent of the remaining minerals are in their
regions. Also the forest, water and other sources
abound in their habitat. But lakhs of tribals have
been displaced from 1990 onwards (due to the
so-called economic liberalization policies of the
Center under pressure from the Westernlenders)
without proper rehabilitation.
International conventions adopted by the
United Nations as well as the International
Labour Organisation have recognized the rights
of tribal communities on land and surface and
sub-surface resources. Many countries including
Canada, Brazil, South Africa and Australia have
been forced to at least acknowledge in different
ways the rights of indigenous communities on
mineral wealth in their respective countries.

But in India, where an overwhelming

majority of mines are located in adivasi areas,
the tribals have not only been denied these rights
but have been driven out of their lands through
forcible acquisition or denied access. The spirit
of the Samatha judgement of the Supreme Court
to recognize tribal ownership rights has been

[20]

In the face of growing resistance by tribal

communities, the Central Government is
proposing an amendment to the Mines and
Minerals (Development and Regulation Act)
2011, to make it mandatory for companies to give
funds for tribal development in districts where
they have mining leases. The funds are to be put
in a District Mineral Foundation Fund which will
be under the control of the administration. Coal
companies are to give 26 per cent of their profits
to the Fund.
The International Labour Organisation (
ILO)- funded report on India's indigenous
population also claims that more than half the
country's mineral wealth is obtained by violating
the rights of tribals. The report states that
minerals found in adivasi or tribal areas
reportedly contribute to more than half of the
national mining production. Yet, mining policies
in India have overlooked the existence of adivasi
communities and the constitutional provision for
the protection of their land and resources.

There is no mention of adivasis ' rights or

protection in any of the procedures. Though a
disaggregated data on the number of mines
operating in the country or the number of people
displaced by such projects does not officially
exist as the information is deemed to be "
politically sensitive," the report estimates that an
overwhelming majority of mines are located in
the adivasi areas. In 1991, out of the 4,175 mines
in the country, 3,500 were in tribal areas.
Another estimate states that between 1950 and

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1991 at least 2,600,000 people were displaced

by mining projects of which only 25 per cent
received any resettlement. Among those
displaced 52 per cent belonged to the Scheduled
Tribes, the report notes. In the case of private
lands, proceedings under the Land Acquisition
Act 1894 are initiated in order to acquire the
land. The legislation also allows the government
to acquire lands upon payment of cash
compensation for any public purpose, including
mining. The report is also stridently critical of
Jharkhand. The new state, instead of enforcing
constitutional and protective rights of the
indigenous communities and restoring their
alienated lands and resources, has signed over
100 memorandums of understanding with the
private industry.

a total number of 1306 families. A total of 90

families were displaced (homestead oustees), who
were resettled in Madhuban Nagar. Of them 52
belonged to Scheduled Tribes, 2 to Scheduled
Castes and 36 belonged to other castes.

Further the economic liberalization,

privatization and globalization (LPG) model of
development in India is virtually depriving the
tribal people and other agriculture dependent
poor people of their traditional means of
sustainable livelihood by promoting the
unregulated growth of mineral-based industries
in the tribal regions of India. In the name of
modernization and the countrys economic
development, the elites in India are taking over
the life sustaining resources of the poor and
pushing them into a further marginalized state
of living as a result of displacing them from their
land and homes. Such development serves the
interests of these elites while it impoverishes the
tribal people and poor peasants in these regions
who are dependent on the life sustaining
resources of the ecosystems in which they live.
The mining and other industries that are taking
over the resources of the ecosystems of these tribal
people and poor peasants fail to provide them
with an improved and sustainable means of
making a living. The very nature of the present
development paradigm does not provide for the
absorption of these poor people into the
organized non-farm sector economy.

On the basis of the empirical study

conducted on the displaced families of lb Valley
Coal Mines, the following are some of the
important impacts that have been revealed from
the analysis of data by the researcher:
The general socio-economic condition of the
oustees has deteriorated significantly.

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Case Study of Impact of Development Project

on Displaced Tribals in Orissa

Orissas coal deposits are mostly concentrated

in two regions - Talcher Belt in Angul District
and the lb Valley Area in Jharsuguda District
and in the State and mining is carried out by the
Mahanadi Coal Fields Limited (MCL), a
subsidiary of Coal India Limited (CIL). The lb
Valley Project has affected 19 villages involving

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Socio-economic inequalities have widened.

The cropping
drastically

Dependence on trees and livestock has

reduced substantially.

Increase in the proportion of agricultural

labourers.

Increasing trend towards nuclear family.

Poor dwelling conditions of the oustees.

Improper use of compensation money

Rise in the incidence of indebtedness.

Drastic reduction in the socio-economic

condition of women.

pattern

has

changed

Issues relate to development and exploitation

of mineral resources:

Mining, world over, has now become an

important input in the economic development a
mineral rich country. In addition to the general
value-adding benefits of mining, a quality which
it shares with many other businesses, mining has
some special qualities which enable it to serve as
a springboard for countries seeking to
industrialise. Mining is at the beginning of the
value chain and has a capacity to kick start
economic development that few other businesses
offer. It does not require a sophisticated supply
chain in the country in which it takes place, as
manufacturing so often does, and it does not
require developed local markets.
Also, minerals are indispensable when
producing manufactured goods of all kinds and
in providing most services, even at a basic level.
Furthermore, all renewable forms of energy
generation, including solar, wind, bio-energy,
and forestry and agricultural production, are

[21]

standards, community betterment, and

protection and restoration of the environment.

Off late two very significant developments

are occurring in the mining industry and related
government resource programs worldwide. One
is positive, the other problematic. Working
together, these two trends have the potential to
change dramatically the way in which mineral
resource companies, the Governments of
resource-based economies, and indeed the world
function in the 21st century.

In short, the concept of sustainable

development requires a complete paradigmatic
shift in national and international thinking,
because making economic and ecological
concerns work together is its controlling
objective. To have sustainability, nations,
industries, companies and individuals can no
longer seek merely to maximize material gains
but must maximize the nonmaterial quality of
life, can no longer rely on technology to make
possible infinite development and population
growth, and can no longer maximize presentgeneration benefits at the expense of future
generations' well-being.

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ultimately dependent on utilizing minerals and

metals in some form.

The first trend is the greatly expanding

international opportunities for mineral resource
development. On the supply side, industrial
development in general and mining in particular
have been accelerated by a number of factors,
including the end of the Cold War, the emergence
of new market economies in Asia, Latin America,
Africa and Eastern Europe, the move toward
privatization of state mining assets, and
increasing fiscal liberalization in developing and
emerging economies.
On the demand side, consumption of the
majority of minerals continues to increase,
particularly in developing countries and
emerging economies. The second trend, however,
consists of the growing challenges to mining
development, production, and products.
Mining, by its very nature, causes significant
environmental, social, cultural and economic
disruption. As it has expanded globally
particularly in the resource based economies of
many developing countries - international
awareness and concern about its negative effects
has heightened, and this heightened concern is
fueling a significant increase in both national
and international laws regulating mining.
To maintain equilibrium sustainable
development gained wide credibility as the centre
piece of the 1987 report of the United Nations
World Commission on Environment and
Development

For development in general, sustainability

mandates three things: preservation of options
for future generations, nurturing of social and
community stability, and maintenance and
restoration of environmental quality. For mining
in particular, this requires poverty alleviation,
meeting of basic human needs, environmental
impact assessment, pollution abatement,
minimization of environmental impact, resource
conservation, adequate worker health and safety

[22]

Issue related to corporate corruption

Governments are dependent upon individual

officials and ministers to negotiate deals.
Companies can gain immensely by bribing these
individuals. This gives rise to an agency
problem for LDCs. While widely recognised, to
date it has been addressed by a variety of ad hoc
international initiatives.

One such is the Extractive Industries

Transparency Initiative, started in 2003 and now
with over thirty signatories among the
governments of resource-rich countries,
indicating recognition of concern for the
problem. It aims to counter corruption in
contracts by requiring companies engaged in
resource extraction to report all their payments,
country-by-country, forcing illicit payments into
the open.

Another initiative has been the pan-OECD

anti-bribery legislation which has made it a
criminal offence for an OECD-based company
to bribe government officials anywhere in the
world in order to win a contract. One
consequence of this OECD legislation has been
the rapid emergence of a two-stage system of
negotiations for the rights to resource extraction.
In the first stage a company which is either too
small to face scrutiny, or not OECD-based,
negotiates with government. In the second stage,
this company onsells the rights to a major OECD
company that has the technology and finance
to undertake exploitation.
A third and related international initiative
has been to co-ordinate the laws relating to
money laundering.

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allows them activity on much larger tracts of land

than previously. This has adverse implications
for equity, the environment and growth.
The Bill also gives legal sanction to the
arbitrary rights of governments, both at the
Centre and the States, to give different types of
licences and leases from reconnaissance to
exploration, prospecting and finally extraction
without any procedure for even consulting, leave
alone taking the consent of tribal communities.
The only reference to consultation (not
consent), is for the grant of licences for minor
minerals (but not major) in Fifth and Sixth
Schedule areas where the gram sabha or the
District council, as the case may be shall be
consulted. Thus even the provisions under other
laws such as the Panchayat Extension (to
Schedule Areas) Act (PESAA), which mandates
consultation with the gram sabhas, are violated
by the complete absence of any consultative
process prior to the granting of lease for major
minerals, which are the main sites of tribal
deprivation. In another provision for notification
of giving leases in forest areas and wildlife areas,
the State government has to take all necessary
permissions from the owners of the land and
those having occupation rights. Thus an
unwarranted differentiation is made between
the rights of tribal communities in Fifth Schedule
non-forest areas and forest areas. However even
in the case of forest areas there is no provision
for what would happen in case the owner does
not give permission.

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A fourth initiative has been the Kimberley

Process which has curtailed illegal international
transactions in diamonds through certification
of the source of origin. The Government of
Nigeria has recently proposed that an equivalent
system of certification be put into place to curtail
the large-scale theft of crude oil from the Niger
Delta. The latest initiative is the Lugar-Cardin
Amendment, now enacted into US law,
whereby all companies listed on the New York
stock market engaged in resource extraction
must report all payments made associated with
contracts in considerable detail. Potentially, such
legislation could so discourage the major
companies from entering into prospecting
contracts with the governments of LDCs that the
only companies left as partners for governments
would be cowboy operations.
But it is not a matter of adopting new
standards, but simply of enforcing standards
which are already incorporated into legal
systems globally.
Issue related to nexus between government and
private sector:

In India, ownership of minerals lies with the

State. However, the Central government which
has control over all major minerals like iron ore,
bauxite, copper, coal and most State
governments which have control over minor
minerals like sand, stone, granite, etc., have
promoted privatisation through leasing mines to
private companies apart from handing over
captive mines of iron ore and bauxite to steel and
aluminium corporates like the Tatas and Birlas.
According to a recent report compiled for the
industry by Ernst and Young, of the 4.9 lakh
hectares of land given out in mining leases in 23
States by the end of 2009, 95 per cent of the leases
comprising 70 per cent of the land were given to
private companies.

The MMRDA Bill aims to further deregularise

and liberalise the mining sector and encourage
privatisation based on the recommendations of
the Hoda Committee. It introduces the concept
of high technology reconnaissance, prospecting
and exploration licences, and easy terms of
conversion to mining leases to encourage the
entry of FDI and foreign companies. It also gives
weightage, in the allocation of leases, to a set of
criteria which favour such companies and also

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Issue related to mineral exploitation and

women sufferings

The displacement of people due to mining

has only multiplied the exploitation and
degradation of womens rights with regard to
land and livelihoods. Historically and also in the
existing legal framework, women have no legal
rights over lands or natural resources. There is
an invisible distinction between rural and tribal
women with regard to control over lands in
traditional land based situations in mainstream
India. Tribal women enjoy a greater social status
with regard to control over resources. This
ensures their active participation and decisionmaking with regard to land utilization,
agriculture and powers over cash flow in a tribal
economy. This is enjoyed to a lesser extent by
rural women in India. Yet, they have a distinct
role in the agrarian society with regard to

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participation in agricultural work, livestock

management, and access to common properties.

Issues related to Mining and Environment

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However, both rural and tribal women are

completely alienated from these accesses and
rights when the mines come. Testimonies of
women from coal mining areas of Orissa
(Talcher) show that displacement and loss of
land were the most serious problems affecting
their lives, as their link to livelihood, economic
and social status, health and security all
depended on land and forests.

Mining activities can suddenly affect quality

of life and the physical, mental, and social wellbeing of local communities. Improvised mining
towns and camps often threaten food availability
and safety, increasing the risk of
malnourishment. Indirect effects of mining on
public health can include increased incidence of
tuberculosis, asthma, chronic bronchitis, and
gastrointestinal diseases.

Environmental impacts of mining and mineral

Whenever villages have been displaced or

affected, women have been forced out of their
land based work and pushed into menial and
marginalised forms of labour as maids and
servants, as construction labourers or into
prostitution, which are highly unorganised and
socially humiliating.

processing includes:

Soluble contaminants in domestic or

agricultural use waters from release of mine
and processing water or leakage from waste
deposits

Women displaced by mining, have lost the

rights to cultivate their traditional crops, and
forests being cut down for mining, they are
unable to collect forest produce for consumption
(food, fodder, medicines or ceremonial needs) or
for sale. The cash flow that tribal and rural
women have access to, by sale of forest produce
and by breeding livestock, has disappeared. They
are forced to walk miles away from their villages
leaving behind their children, either to collect
forest produce or find wage labour and have had
to sell away all their cattle. In many situations
there is seasonal migration leading to work
insecurity, breaking up of family relations and
exposing them to various social hazards.

Deposition of solids on agricultural land and

in shallow sea zones

Withdrawal of water for industrial purposes

Alteration of aquatic flora and fauna,

including\ destruction of fish species and
accumulation of toxic elements in fish

Sand deposition in river channels and

shallow sea zones

To curb the social and cultural impact of

mining local communities are organizing protests
against the government and companies.

[24]

2. Underground water pollution

Soluble contaminants in wells, springs etc.

resulting from leakage from waste heaps and
mine water

Natural water sources drying up as a

consequence of water table lowering
3. Air pollution

Dust blown on inhabited, agricultural lands

Accumulation in plants of toxic elements

carried by dust

Acidification of water bodies and soil

resulting from SO emissions 2

Damage to buildings from SO emissions 2

Air: Exposure to high concentrations of

sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, heavy
metals, including lead, mercury and
cadmium; and

4.

Solid waste

Hazards related to lack of stability of waste

deposits

Soil: Deposition of toxic elements from air

emissions.

Land disturbance

Withdrawal of agricultural land

Frequent public health problems related to

mining activities include:

1. Surface water pollution

Water: Surface and ground water

contamination with metals and elements;
microbiological contamination from sewage
and wastes in campsites and mine worker
residential areas;

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5.

Excavation

Loss of fauna and flora habitats.

Land subsidence due to underground

mining.

process design. The latter would be preferable

from the point of view of maximizing pollution
reduction in relation to cost, but would provide
no tax advantage.
Case study of Gobi Desert

Methods for reducing the environmental

impact of mining and metallurgical operations
have improved considerably over the last couple
of decades. At the mining stage, methods for
rehabilitating mined-out areas to the original or
new land uses have been developed and are
applied in most new mining projects. Similarly,
releases of effluents to surface water bodies or
to groundwater are controlled and reduced
through judicious planning at the very beginning
of mining projects.

There are several reasons for the change in

attitudes. The most important may be the
pressure of public opinion. Second,
conditionalities aimed at ensuring good
environmental practices are increasingly being
required by international financial institutions
and by commercial banks. Third, environmental
control measures in new projects usually do not
entail major cost increases and may even
improve production economies.

Today, however, it is the centre of the planet's

greatest resource boom. Some are calling it "the
last frontier", others "Minegolia". Whatever the
name, this impoverished but remarkable nation
in east Asia is on the brink of one of the most
dramatic transformations in human history.

Gobi Desert

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This resource thought to be the biggest

deposit of coking coal on the planet is chewed
out and transported away to China by a
seemingly endless line of trucks that rumble
across the plains in a convoy of dust. Until
recently, this area of southern Mongolia was one
of the world's last great wildernesses a cold
desert that is home to gazelle, wild ass and
herders living a traditional nomadic existence.

Most governments have made the "Polluter

Pays Principle" (PPP) an integral part of their
environmental policies. According to this
principle "the polluter should bear the expenses
of carrying out pollution prevention and control
measures decided by public authorities to ensure
that the environment is in an acceptable state.
In other words, the cost of these measures should
be reflected in the cost of goods and services
which cause pollution in production and/or
consumption". The PPP aims to improve
economic efficiency.

There are some examples of economic

instruments not directly aimed at internalizing
environmental costs but rather at promoting
pollution control measures. These include tax
incentives such as accelerated depreciation for
pollution control equipment. While these
instruments are likely to contribute to reductions
in pollution, they are not very cost-effective from
the government's point of view. Furthermore,
they may provide an incentive to companies to
invest in "end-of-pipe" technology, that is, to treat
emissions rather than to prevent pollution from
occurring in the first place through appropriate

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The vast opencast pit at Tevan Tolgoi is just

the start. Its 6bn tonnes of coal are being partly
developed by a local mining firm. Extraction
rights will also be auctioned off to overseas
bidders, likely to include China's Shenhua,
Peabody of the US and a Russian consortium.
Whoever does the digging, the ultimate buyer of
the fuel is likely to be China, which accounts for
85% of Mongolia's exports. The extraction is
expected to triple the national economy by 2020
and propel the living standards of the small,
impoverished 2.6 million population into the
global middle class, but locals fear it will also
devastate an arid environment as the mines suck
up scarce water resources, damage the
grasslands and necessitate roads and electricity
grids that disrupt the migration patterns of local
species.
The damage is already evident in the crossGobi traffic, where drivers churn up so much
dust that some use their headlights in the middle
of the day to pierce the gloom.

Nomad families in the area blame the mines

for dried up wells, shrinking watering holes and
clouds of dust that blacken the lungs and
stomachs of their animals.
Two-thirds of the state's Human
Development Fund which has come from
mining revenues has been spent on monthly

[25]

cash payments to the population to secure

electoral votes. Environmental worries also loom
large, particularly with regard to water usage
rights.
The mines are good for Mongolia, but bad
for residents of the southern Gobi. "They take
too much water. There is not enough left so the
herders have to move or sell their animals."

Rio Tinto has pledged to set the highest

international standards in minimising the impact
on the environment. They plan to build an
asphalt road to reduce dust, with underpasses
for migrating animals. They have also promised
to recycle much of their water.

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The operators of Oyu Tolgoi acknowledge

they have taken surface water until now, which

has made them a competitor with the nomads

for scarce resources. But from next year, the mine
will extract and treat saline water from a fossil
aquifer 45km away. Operators say this is not
linked to any lakes or watering holes.

[26]

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