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Abstract
India produces 87 minerals, which include 4 fuel minerals, 10 metallic, 47 non-metallic, 3atomic and 23 minor minerals. The country has abundant reserves of key minerals such as iron ore, bauxite, dolomite, gypsum, limestone, mica and adequate reserves of Chromite, manganese, zinc and graphite. In fact, India is a leading producer of key minerals such as iron ore and bauxite. Though the industry is largely fragmented, comprising several small scale operational mines, it is still dominated by the public sector, which accounted for 74.5% of the total mineral production in India in FinancialYear2011. The total value of mineral production (excluding atomic minerals) during 2010-11 is estimated at INR 2,006 billion; an increase of around 11.83% year of the total mineral production in India was reported at 2,628 mines during Financial Year2011, as compared with 2,999 mines in the previous year. Of these mines, 574 are involved in the extraction of coal and lignite, 608 in metallic minerals and 1,446 in non-metallic account for the highest number of mines in the country (377 and 372 mines, respectively).
Keywords: mineral resources, mining reserve, GDP, econmicand social
Introduction
Availability of mineral has a unique distinction of influencing the pace of economic development of a country. Iron and steel aluminium, cement coal petroleum and fertilizer industries have a vital role in the economic progress as with high linkage effects they create condition for large scale industrialization and they enable a country to reach a high level of development. India mineral resources can be broadly classified into three categories.
First category : In the first category minerals are include iron ore manganese, mica, thorium, llmenite, chromite, and magnetite. These type of mineral, are excess of their domestic demand surplus quantity produced exported.
Second category: In the second category mineral is including bauxite, non-coking coal limestone, dolomite, gypsum, silica salt and barium. These type of mineral are adequate but cannot afford to export any one of them.
Third category : The third category we may include copper, zinc, lead, gold,...