Chapter Overview

India mines about a billion tonnes of coal a year, produces more than enough iron ore and bauxite for its own needs, and is one of the world’s largest solar markets. Yet it imports almost nine-tenths of its crude oil and nearly all of its lithium and cobalt. This chapter maps where India’s minerals (खनिज) and energy (ऊर्जा) resources are, who leads in what, and how the country is managing the shift from coal to clean energy.

Chhattisgarh sits at the centre of this map: second in coal output, the only tin producer, a major iron ore state and home to the first lithium block auctioned in India. This chapter gives the all-India picture; the state details are in Minerals, Energy and Industries of Chhattisgarh.

What You’ll Learn

By the end of this chapter, you’ll be able to:

Classify minerals and explain why metallic minerals lie in the Peninsular plateau
Name the leading states and key mines for iron ore, manganese, chromite, bauxite, copper, lead-zinc and gold
Locate mica, limestone, gypsum, rock phosphate, uranium and thorium, and explain India’s critical minerals policy (MMDR 2023, NCMM 2025)
Match coalfields to river valleys, oilfields to states, and nuclear stations to sites
Quote the 2026 status of India’s power capacity, solar and wind leaders, and the 500 GW by 2030 and net zero 2070 targets
Write a balanced Mains answer on energy security, coal dependence and the energy transition

Prerequisites

Physiography of India: the Peninsular plateau, the Aravallis and the coasts where these resources lie
Drainage System of India: the river valleys of the coalfields and the hydro projects
Mineral Resources and Mining Belts of Chhattisgarh: the state-level counterpart

Learning Path

Follow these topics in order:

graph TD
    A["1. Metallic minerals: iron, manganese, chromite, bauxite, copper, lead-zinc, gold"] --> B["2. Non-metallic, atomic and critical minerals; mineral policy"]
    B --> C["3. Conventional energy: coal, oil, gas, thermal, hydro, nuclear"]
    C --> D["4. Non-conventional energy: solar, wind, bio, geothermal, green hydrogen"]
    D --> E["5. Mains: energy security and the transition"]
    E --> F["Quick Revision"]

Topics in This Chapter

#	Topic	What it covers	Read time
1	Metallic Minerals of India	Classification, rock systems, mineral belts; iron ore, manganese, chromite, bauxite, copper, lead-zinc, tin, gold	14 min
2	Non-metallic, Atomic and Critical Minerals	Mica, limestone, gypsum, rock phosphate, diamond; uranium, thorium, three-stage nuclear plan; critical minerals, MMDR Act, NCMM, DMF	13 min
3	Conventional Energy	Coal types and coalfields, oilfields and refineries, natural gas, thermal, hydro and nuclear power, SHANTI Act 2025	15 min
4	Non-conventional Energy	Solar and wind leaders, solar parks, bioenergy, geothermal, tidal, green hydrogen, climate targets, schemes	14 min
—	Quick Revision	Every mine, state, date and number of the chapter on one page	5 min

Where It Is Asked

Exam Focus

Prelims P-I (India GS): “which state leads in X” (Odisha for iron ore, bauxite and chromite; Rajasthan for lead-zinc and gypsum; Gujarat for wind; Rajasthan for solar), place–mineral pairs (Malanjkhand, Jaduguda, Jhamarkotra, Panna), coalfield–river pairs, nuclear sites, and current figures and schemes. Statement-based traps swap leaders, confuse resources with production, or mix installed capacity with generation.
Mains P-V GS-III: distribution of mineral and energy resources, energy security, coal dependence, critical minerals, renewable energy and its challenges, and the resource curse in mineral-rich tribal regions.
Essay and Interview: “Can India grow fast and decarbonise at the same time?” and “Has Chhattisgarh’s mineral wealth helped its people?” are natural questions.

Quick Reference

Fact	Detail
Iron ore	Odisha produces more than half (FY 2023-24); richest ore magnetite, most used haematite
Chromite / bauxite	Odisha (Sukinda / Panchpatmali)
Copper / lead-zinc	Malanjkhand (MP) / Rajasthan (Rampura Agucha, Zawar)
Gold / tin	Hutti (Karnataka) / Chhattisgarh only producer
Uranium / thorium	Jaduguda, Tummalapalle / monazite sands (Kerala coast)
Critical minerals	30 listed (2023); NCMM approved 29 Jan 2025 (₹34,300 crore total)
Coal	1,047.6 MT (FY 2024-25); Odisha 1st, Chhattisgarh 2nd; Gondwana ~98%
Crude oil	88.7% imported (2025-26); Digboi 1889/1901; Mumbai High 1974
Power capacity	~552 GW, non-fossil over 54% (July 2026)
Nuclear	24 reactors, 8,780 MW (July 2026); SHANTI Act 2025; 100 GW by 2047
Renewables	Solar ~165 GW (Rajasthan leads); wind ~58 GW (Gujarat leads)
Targets	500 GW non-fossil by 2030; net zero 2070; Green Hydrogen 5 MMT by 2030

Start Learning

Ready to begin? Start with the first topic:

→ Metallic Minerals of India