mineral and energy - studiestoday.com class 12 geography mineral and...conventional sources of...

Unit IIIUnit IIIUnit IIIUnit IIIUnit IIIChapter 7

MINERAL AND

ENERGY

RESOURCES

India is endowed with a rich variety of mineralresources due to its varied geological structure.Bulk of the valuable minerals are products ofpre-palaezoic age (Refer: Chapter 2 of Class XI,Textbook: “Fundamentals of PhysicalGeography” and are mainly associated withmetamorphic and igneous rocks of thepeninsular India. The vast alluvial plain tractof north India is devoid of minerals of economicuse. The mineral resources provide the countrywith the necessary base for industrialdevelopment. In this chapter, we shall discussthe availability of various types of mineral andenergy resources in the country.

A mineral is a natural substance of organicor inorganic origin with definite chemical andphysical properties.

TTTTTypes ofypes ofypes ofypes ofypes of Miner Miner Miner Miner Mineral Ral Ral Ral Ral Resouresouresouresouresourcescescescesces

On the basis of chemical and physicalproperties, minerals may be grouped under twomain categories of metallics and non-metallicswhich may further be classified as follows :

Fig. 7.1 : Classification of Minerals

As, it is clear from the Fig. 7.1 metallicminerals are the sources of metals. Iron ore,copper, gold produce metal and are includedin this category. Metallic minerals are furtherdivided into ferrous and non-ferrous metallicminerals. Ferrous, as you know, refers to iron.All those minerals which have iron content areferrous such as iron ore itself and those whichdo not have iron content are non-ferrous suchas copper, bauxite, etc.

Non-metallic minerals are either organicin origin such as fossil fuels also known as mineralfuels which are derived from the buried animaland plant life such as coal and petroleum. Othertype of non-metallic minerals are inorganic inorigin such as mica, limestone and graphite, etc.

Minerals have certain characteristics. Theseare unevenly distributed over space. There isinverse relationship in quality and quantity ofminerals i.e. good quality minerals are less inquantity as compared to low quality minerals.The third main characteristic is that all mineralsare exhaustible over time. These take long todevelop geologically and they cannot bereplenished immediately at the time of need.Thus, they have to be conserved and notmisused as they do not have the second crop.

Agencies involved in theAgencies involved in theAgencies involved in theAgencies involved in theAgencies involved in the

exploration of mineralsexploration of mineralsexploration of mineralsexploration of mineralsexploration of minerals

In India, systematic surveying, prospectingand exploration for minerals is undertakenby the Geological Survey of India (GSI), Oiland Natural Gas Commission (ONGC),Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd.(MECL), National Mineral DevelopmentCorporation (NMDC), Indian Bureau of Mines(IBM), Bharat Gold Mines Ltd. (BGML),Hindustan Copper Ltd. (HCL), NationalAluminium Company Ltd. (NALCO) and theDepartments of Mining and Geology invarious states.

Distribution of Minerals in IndiaDistribution of Minerals in IndiaDistribution of Minerals in IndiaDistribution of Minerals in IndiaDistribution of Minerals in India

Most of the metallic minerals in India occur inthe peninsular plateau region in the old

crystalline rocks. Over 97 per cent of coalreserves occur in the valleys of Damodar, Sone,Mahanadi and Godavari. Petroleum reservesare located in the sedimentary basins of Assam,Gujarat and Mumbai High i.e. off-shore regionin the Arabian Sea. New reserves have beenlocated in the Krishna-Godavari and Kaveribasins. Most of the major mineral resourcesoccur to the east of a line linking Mangaloreand Kanpur.

Minerals are generally concentrated inthree broad belts in India. There may be somesporadic occurrences here and there in isolatedpockets. These belts are :

The North-Eastern Plateau Region

This belt covers Chotanagpur (Jharkhand),Orissa Plateau, West Bengal and parts ofChhattisgarh. Have you ever thought about thereason of major iron and steel industry beinglocated in this region? It has variety of mineralsviz. iron ore coal, manganese, bauxite, mica.

Find out the specific region where theseminerals are being extracted.

The South-Western Plateau Region

This belt extends over Karnataka, Goa andcontiguous Tamil Nadu uplands and Kerala.This belt is rich in ferrous metals and bauxite.It also contains high grade iron ore, manganeseand limestone. This belt packs in coal depositsexcept Neyveli lignite.

This belt does not have as diversifiedmineral deposits as the north-eastern belt.Kerala has deposits of monazite and thorium,bauxite clay. Goa has iron ore deposits.

The North-Western Region

This belt extends along Aravali in Rajasthan andpart of Gujarat and minerals are associated withDharwar system of rocks. Copper, zinc havebeen major minerals. Rajasthan is rich inbuilding stones i.e. sandstone, granite, marble.Gypsum and Fuller’s earth deposits are alsoextensive. Dolomite and limestone provide rawmaterials for cement industry. Gujarat is known

Mineral and Energy Resources 73

74 India : People and Economy

for its petroleum deposits. You may be knowingthat Gujarat and Rajasthan both have richsources of salt.

Why and where Dandi March wasorganised by Mahatma Gandhi?

The Himalayan belt is another mineral beltwhere copper, lead, zinc, cobalt and tungstenare known to occur. They occur on both theeastern and western parts. Assam valley hasmineral oil deposits. Besides oil resources arealso found in off-shore-areas near MumbaiCoast (Mumbai High).

In the following pages you will find thespatial pattern of some of the importantminerals.

Ferrous Mineral

Ferrous minerals such as iron ore, manganese,chromite, etc., provide a strong base for thedevelopment of metallurgical industries. Ourcountry is well-placed in respect of ferrousminerals both in reserves and production.

Iron Ore

India is endowed with fairly abundantresources of iron ore. It has the largest reserveof iron ore in Asia. The two main types of orefound in our country are haematite andmagnetite. It has great demand in internationalmarket due to its superior quality. The iron oremines occur in close proximity to the coal fieldsin the north-eastern plateau region of thecountry which adds to their advantage.

The total reserves of iron ore in the countrywere about 20 billion tonnes in the year 2004-05. About 95 per cent of total reserves of ironore is located in the States of Orissa,Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Goa,Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. In Orissa,iron ore occurs in a series of hill ranges inSundergarh, Mayurbhanj and Jhar. Theimportant mines are Gurumahisani, Sulaipet,Badampahar (Mayurbhaj), Kiruburu(Kendujhar) and Bonai (Sundergarh). Similarhill ranges, Jharkhand has some of the oldest

iron ore mines and most of the iron and steelplants are located around them. Most of theimportant mines such as Noamundi and Guaare located in Poorbi and PashchimiSinghbhum districts. This belt further extendsto Durg, Dantewara and Bailadila. Dalli, andRajhara in Durg are the important mines ofiron ore in the country. In Karnataka, iron oredeposits occur in Sandur-Hospet area ofBellary district, Baba Budan hills andKudremukh in Chikmagalur district and partsof Shimoga, Chitradurg and Tumkur districts.The districts of Chandrapur, Bhandara andRatnagiri in Maharashtra, Karimnagar,Warangal, Kurnool, Cuddapah and Anantapurdistricts of Andhra Pradesh, Salem and Nilgirisdistricts of Tamil Nadu are other iron miningregions. Goa has also emerged as an importantproducer of iron ore.

Manganese

Manganese is an important raw material forsmelting of iron ore and also used formanufacturing ferro alloys. Manganesedeposits are found in almost all geological

Can you find out its reason?


Fig. 7.2 : India – Metallic Minerals (Ferrous)


formations, however, it is mainly associated withDharwar system.

Orissa is the leading producer ofManganese. Major mines in Orissa are locatedin the central part of the iron ore belt of India,particularly in Bonai, Kendujhar, Sundergarh,Gangpur, Koraput, Kalahandi and Bolangir.

Karnataka is another major producer andhere the mines are located in Dharwar, Bellary,Belgaum, North Canara, Chikmagalur,Shimoga, Chitradurg and Tumkur.Maharashtra is also an important producer ofmanganese which is mined in Nagpur,Bhandara and Ratnagiri districts. Thedisadvantage to these mines is that they arelocated far from steel plants. The manganesebelt of Madhya Pradesh extends in a belt inBalaghat-Chhindwara-Nimar-Mandla andJhabua districts.

Andhra Pradesh, Goa, and Jharkhand areother minor producers of manganese.

Non-Ferrous Minerals

India is poorly endowed with non-ferrousmetallic minerals except bauxite.

Bauxite

Bauxite is the ore which is used inmanufacturing of aluminium. Bauxite is foundmainly in tertiary deposits and is associatedwith laterite rocks occurring extensively eitheron the plateau or hill ranges of peninsular Indiaand also in the coastal tracts of the country.

Orissa happens to be the largest producerof Bauxite. Kalahandi and Sambalpur are theleading producers. The other two areas whichhave been increasing their production areBolangir and Koraput. The patlands ofJharkhand in Lohardaga have rich deposits.Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh andMaharashtra are other major producers.Bhavanagar, Jamnagar in Gujarat have the majordeposits. Chhattisgarh has bauxite deposits inAmarkantak plateau while Katni-Jabalpur areaand Balaghat in M.P. have important deposits ofbauxite. Kolaba, Thane, Ratnagiri, Satara, Puneand Kolhapur in Maharashtra are importantproducers. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Goa areminor producers of bauxite.

Copper

Copper is an indispensable metal in theelectrical industry for making wires, electricmotors, transformers and generators. It isalloyable, malleable and ductile. It is also mixedwith gold to provide strength to jewellery.

The Copper deposits mainly occur inSinghbhum district in Jharkhand, Balaghatdistrict in Madhya Pradesh and Jhunjhunu andAlwar districts in Rajasthan.

Minor producers of Copper are Agnigundalain Guntur District (Andhra Pradesh), Chitradurgand Hasan districts (Karnataka) and South Arcotdistrict (Tamil Nadu).

Non-metallic Minerals

Among the non-metallic minerals produced inIndia, mica is the important one. The otherminerals extracted for local consumption arelimestone, dolomite and phosphate.

Mica

Mica is mainly used in the electrical andelectronic industries. It can be split into very thinsheets which are tough and flexible. Mica inIndia is produced in Jharkhand, AndhraPradesh and Rajasthan followed by Tamil Nadu,West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. InJharkhand high quality mica is obtained in abelt extending over a distance of about 150 km,in length and about 22 km, in width in lowerHazaribagh plateau. In Andhra Pradesh. Nelloredistrict produces the best quality mica. InRajasthan mica belt extends for about 320 kmsfrom Jaipur to Bhilwara and around Udaipur.Mica deposits also occur in Mysore and Hasandistricts of Karanataka, Coimbatore,Tiruchirapalli, Madurai and Kanniyakumari inTamil Nadu, Alleppey in Kerala, Ratnagiri inMaharashtra, Purulia and Bankura in WestBengal.

Energy Resources

Mineral fuels are essential for generation of power,required by agriculture, industry, transport andother sectors of the economy. Mineral fuels likecoal, petroleum and natural gas (known as fossilfuels), nuclear energy minerals, are the


Fig. 7.3 : India – Minerals (Non-Ferrous)


They lie in Jharkhand-Bengal coal belt and theimportant coal fields in this region are Raniganj,Jharia, Bokaro, Giridih, Karanpura.

Jharia is the largest coal field followed byRaniganj. The other river valleys associatedwith coal are Godavari, Mahanadi and Sone.The most important coal mining centres areSingrauli in Madhya Pradesh (part of Singraulicoal field lies in Uttar Pradesh), Korba inChhattisgarh, Talcher and Rampur in Orissa,Chanda–Wardha, Kamptee and Bander inMaharashtra and Singareni and Pandur inAndhra Pradesh.

conventional sources of energy. Theseconventional sources are exhaustible resources.

Coal

Coal is a one of the important minerals whichis mainly used in the generation of thermalpower and smelting of iron ore. Coal occurs inrock sequences mainly of two geological ages,namely Gondwana and tertiary deposits.

About 80 per cent of the coal deposits inIndia is of bituminous type and is of non-cokinggrade. The most important Gondwana coalfields of India are located in Damodar Valley.

At Singareni, Canaries to miners’ rescueAt Singareni, Canaries to miners’ rescueAt Singareni, Canaries to miners’ rescueAt Singareni, Canaries to miners’ rescueAt Singareni, Canaries to miners’ rescue

Singareni collieries, the country’s premier coal production company, still uses canaries to detect thepresence of deadly carbon monoxide in underground mines. Miners collapse and often die even ifsmall quantities of the highly poisonous CO are present in the air. Though, miners speak lovingly ofthe canaries, the underground experience is not at all pleasant for the birds. When lowered intomines with CO presence, the birds show distress symptoms such as ruffling of feathers, pronouncedchirping and loss of life. These reactions occur even if 0.15 per cent of CO is present in the air. If thecontent is 0.3 per cent the bird shows immediate distress and falls off its perch in two to threeminutes. A cage of birds is a good indicator in air containing more than 0.15 per cent CO, said a coalminer.

The sophisticated hand held CO detectors introduced by the company can detect CO concentrationsfrom as low as 10 ppm to as high as 1,000 ppm. But despite this, the miners trust the birds, whohave saved the lives of several of their predecessors.

Deccan Chronicle, 26.08.2006

Fig.7.4 : Neyveli Coalfield


Fig. 7.5 : India – Conventional Energy Resources


Tertiary coals occur in Assam, ArunachalPradesh, Meghalaya and Nagaland. It is extractedfrom Darangiri, Cherrapunji, Mewlong andLangrin (Meghalaya); Makum, Jaipur and Nazirain upper Assam, Namchik – Namphuk (ArunachalPradesh) and Kalakot (Jammu and Kashmir).

Besides, the brown coal or lignite occur inthe coastal areas of Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry,Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir.

Petroleum

Crude petroleum consists of hydrocarbons ofliquid and gaseous states varying in chemicalcomposition, colour and specific gravity. It is anessential source of energy for all internalcombustion engines in automobiles, railways andaircraft. Its numerous by-products are processedin petrochemical industries such as fertiliser,synthetic rubber, synthetic fibre, medicines,vaseline, lubricants, wax, soap and cosmetics.

Petroleum is referred to as liquid goldbecause of its scarcity and diversified uses.

Lunej. Mumbai High which lies 160 km offMumbai was discovered in 1973 andproduction commenced in 1976. Oil andnatural gas have been found in exploratorywells in Krishna-Godavari and Kaveri basinon the east coast.

Oil extracted from the wells is crude oiland contains many impurities. It cannot beused directly. It needs to be refined. There aretwo types of refineries in India: (a) field basedand (b) market based. Digboi is an exampleof field based and Barauni is an example ofmarket based refinery.

There are 18 refineries in India (Fig. 7.6).Identify the States in which these arelocated.

Natural Gas

The Gas Authority of India Limited was setup in 1984 as a public sector undertaking totransport and market natural gas. It isobtained alongwith oil in all the oil fields butexclusive reserves have been located along theeastern coast as well as (Tamil Nadu, Orissaand Andhra Pradesh), Tripura, Rajasthan andoff-shore wells in Gujarat and Maharashtra.

Crude petroleum occurs in sedimentaryrocks of the tertiary period. Oil explorationand production was systematically taken upafter the Oil and Natural Gas Commission wasset up in 1956. Till then, the Digboi in Assamwas the only oil producing region but thescenario has changed after 1956. In recentyears, new oil deposits have been found at theextreme western and eastern parts of thecountry. In Assam, Digboi, Naharkatiya andMoran are important oil producing areas. Themajor oil fields of Gujarat are Ankaleshwar,Kalol, Mehsana, Nawagam, Kosamba and

Nuclear Energy Resources

Nuclear energy has emerged as a viable sourcein recent times. Important minerals used for thegeneration of nuclear energy are uranium andthorium. Uranium deposits occur in the Dharwarrocks. Geographically, uranium ores are knownto occur in several locations along the SingbhumCopper belt. It is also found in Udaipur, Alwarand Jhunjhunu districts of Rajasthan, Durgdistrict of Chhattisgarh, Bhandara district ofMaharashtra and Kullu district of HimachalPradesh. Thorium is mainly obtained frommonazite and ilmenite in the beach sands along

Indications of huge gas reserves in Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu)Indications of huge gas reserves in Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu)Indications of huge gas reserves in Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu)Indications of huge gas reserves in Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu)Indications of huge gas reserves in Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu)

According to a newspaper report (The Hindu, 05.09.2006) the Oil and Natural Gas Commission hasfound potential zones of natural gas reserves in Ramanathapuram district. The survey is still in theinitial stages. The exact quantity of gas reserves will be known only after the completion of thesurvey. But the results are encouraging.


Fig. 7.6 : India – Oil Refineries


the coast of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. World’srichest monazite deposits occur in Palakkadand Kollam districts of Kerala, nearVishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh andMahanadi river delta in Orissa.

Atomic Energy Commission wasestablished in 1948, progress could be madeonly after the establishment of the AtomicEnergy Institute at Trombay in 1954 which wasrenamed as the Bhabha Atomic ResearchCentre in 1967. The important nuclear powerprojects are Tarapur (Maharashtra),Rawatbhata near Kota (Rajasthan), Kalpakkam(Tamil Nadu), Narora (Uttar Pradesh), Kaiga(Karnataka) and Kakarapara (Gujarat).

Non-Conventional Energy Sources

Fossil fuel sources, such as coal, petroleum,natural gas and nuclear energy use exhaustibleraw materials. Sustainable energy resources areonly the renewable energy sources like solar,wind, hydro-geothermal and biomass. Theseenergy sources are more equitably distributedand environmental friendly. The non-conventionalenergy sources will provide more sustained,

eco-friendly cheaper energy after the initial costis taken care of.

Solar Energy

Sun rays tapped in photovoltaic cells can beconverted into energy, known as solar energy.The two effective processes considered to bevery effective to tap solar energy arephotovoltaics and solar thermal technology.Solar thermal technology has some relativeadvantages over all other non-renewableenergy sources. It is cost competitive,environment friendly and easy to construct.Solar energy is 7 per cent more effective thancoal or oil based plants and 10 per cent moreeffective than nuclear plants. It is generallyused more in appliances like heaters, cropdryers, cookers, etc. The western part of Indiahas greater potential for the development ofsolar energy in Gujarat and Rajasthan.

Wind Energy

Wind energy is absolutely pollution free,inexhaustible source of energy. The mechanism

How are the developedcountries of the worldutilising non-conventionalenergy resources? Discuss.


of energy conversion from blowing wind issimple. The kinetic energy of wind, throughturbines is converted into electrical energy. Thepermanent wind systems such the trade winds,westerlies and seasonal wind like monsoon havebeen used as source of energy. Besides these,local winds, land and sea breezes can also beused to produce electricity.

India, already has started generating windenergy. It has an ambitious programme to install250 wind-driven turbines with a total capacityof 45 megawatts, spread over 12 suitablelocations, specially in coastal areas. Accordingto the estimation by Ministry of Power, India willbe able to produce 3,000 megawatts of electricfrom this source. The Ministry of non-conventionalsources of energy is developing wind energy inIndia to lessen the burden of oil import bill. Thecountry’s potential of wind power generationexceeds 50,000 megawatts, of which one fourthcan be easily harnessed. In Rajasthan, Gujarat,Maharashtra and Karnataka, favourableconditions for wind energy exist. Wind power plantat Lamba in Gujarat in Kachchh is the largest inAsia. Another, wind power plant is located atTuticorin in Tamil Nadu.

Tidal and Wave Energy

Ocean currents are the store-house of infiniteenergy. Since the beginning of seventeenth andeighteenth century, persistent efforts were madeto create a more efficient energy system fromthe ceaseless tidal waves and ocean current.

Large tidal waves are known to occuralong the west coast of India. Hence, India hasgreat potential for the development of tidalenergy along the coasts but so far these havenot yet been utilised.

Geothermal Energy

When the magma from the interior of earth,comes out on the surface, tremendous heat isreleased. This heat energy can successfully betapped and converted to electrical energy. Apartfrom this, the hot water that gushes out throughthe gyser wells is also used in the generation ofthermal energy. It is popularly known asGeothermal energy. This energy is nowconsidered to be one of the key energy sourceswhich can be developed as an alternate source.

The hot springs and geysers are being usedsince medieval period. In India, a geothermalenergy plant has been commissioned atManikaran in Himachal Pradesh.

The first successful (1890) attempt to tapthe underground heat was made in the cityof Boise, Idaho (U.S.A.), where a hot waterpipe network was built to give heat to thesurrounding buildings. This plant is stillworking.

Bio-energy

Bio-energy refers to energy derived from biologicalproducts which includes agricultural residues,municipal, industrial and other wastes. Bio-energy is a potential source of energy conversion.It can be converted into electrical energy, heatenergy or gas for cooking. It will also process thewaste and garbage and produce energy. This willimprove economic life of rural areas in developingcountries, reduce environmental pollution,enhance self-reliance and reduce pressure on fuelwood. One such project converting municipalwaste into energy is Okhla in Delhi.

Conservation of Mineral ResourcesConservation of Mineral ResourcesConservation of Mineral ResourcesConservation of Mineral ResourcesConservation of Mineral Resources

The challenge of sustainable developmentrequires integration of quest for economicdevelopment with environmental concerns.Traditional methods of resource use result intogenerating enormous quantity of waste as wellas create other environmental problems. Hence,for sustainable development calls for theprotection of resources for the future generations.There is an urgent need to conserve the resources.The alternative energy sources like solar power,wind, wave, geothermal energy are inexhaustibleresource. These should be developed to replacethe exhaustible resources. In case of metallicminerals, use of scrap metals will enablerecycling of metals. Use of scrap is speciallysignificant in metals like copper, lead and zincin which India’s reserves are meagre. Use ofsubstitutes for scarce metals may also reducetheir consumption. Export of strategic and scarceminerals must be reduced, so that the existingreserve may be used for a longer period.


EXERCISESEXERCISESEXERCISESEXERCISESEXERCISES

1. Choose the right answers of the following from the given options.

(i) In which one of the following States are the major oil fields located?

(a) Assam (c) Rajasthan

(b) Bihar (d) Tamil Nadu

(ii) At which one of the following places was the first atomic power stationstarted?

(a) Kalpakkam (c) Rana Pratap Sagar

(b) Narora (d) Tarapur

(iii) Which one of the following minerals is known as brown diamond?

(a) Iron (c) Manganese

(b) Lignite (d) Mica

(iv) Which one of the following is non-renewable source of energy?

(a) Hydel (c) Thermal

(b) Solar (d) Wind power

2. Answer the following questions in about 30 words.

(i) Give an account of the distribution of mica in India.

(ii) What is nuclear power? Mention the important nuclear power stationsin India.

(iii) Name non-ferrous metal. Discuss their spatial distribution.

(vi) What are non-conventional sources of energy?

3. Answer the following questions in about 150 words.

(i) Write a detailed note on the Petroleum resources of India.

(ii) Write an essay on hydel power in India.

mineral and energy - studiestoday.com class 12 geography mineral and...conventional sources of...

Documents