ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE : NATURAL RESOURCES 57
(12) Graphite
Recoverable reserves of graphite are estimated at 46.5 lakh tonnes of which 31 lakh
tonnes occur in Kerala and Bihar and the rest in Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and
Andhra Pradesh.
(13) Limonite
Total reserves in limonite at 14.6 crore mainly in beach sands on Eastern and Western
Coasts and Tamil Nadu are important.
(14) Iron Ore
India is favourable endowed with iron ore deposits recoverable reserves are estimated
at 1197.7 crore tonnes of which 10, 267 tonnes are haematite and 171 crore tonnes magnitute
Ore. Haematite mainly occurs in Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa, and
Karnataka. Large reserves of magnetite ore occur along West Coast, primarily in Karnataka
with minor occurrences in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
(15) Kaolin
India possesses vast resources of kaolin and ball clay with kaolin Resources being
placed at 87.2 crore tonnes. Currently, principal producing states for Kaolin are Bihar,
Gujrat, Rajasthan and West Bengal, Kerala, Haryana, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh also
produce significant quantities. Ball Clay Kerala is chiefly produced in Rajasthan, Andhra
Pradesh and Gujarat.
(16) Lead-Zinc
Lead-zinc ore occur in Rajasthan, Meghalaya, Gujrat, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh,
Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Orissa and Sikkim. However, 95 per cent of the known
resources are localised in south-central Rajasthan and the adjoining part of Gujrat. Total
identified ore resources are placed at 38.3 crore tonnes equivalent to an in-situ mental
content of 56 lakh tonnes of lead and 1.83 crore tonnes of zinc.
(17) Limestone
Limestine occurs extensively in the country and is produced in almost all states. Major
Producing states are Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Gujrat, Bihar, Orissa,
Rajasthan and Karnataka. Total recoverable reserves of Limestone of all grades are estimated
Manganese Ore at 6935.4 crore tonnes.
(18) Manganese
Recoverable reserves of manganese ore are estimated at 15.4 crore tonnes. Rich
deposists of Manganese Ore occur in Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujrat, Karanataka, Madhya
Pradesh, Bihar and Orissa. Major producers are Orissa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and
Maharashtra.
(19) Mica
India is world’s leading producer of sheet mica and accounts for about 60 per cent of
global mica trade. Economic deposits of mica occur in three richest mica belts, accounts for
almost 60 per cent of India’s output in terms of value. Though large mica resources are