NATURAL RESOURCES OF INDIA
Biotic resources Biotic resources are obtained from the living and organic material. These include forest products, wildlife, crops and other living organisms. Most of these resources are renewable because they can regenerate themselves. Fossil fuels are considered as biotic because they are formed from decayed organic matter. Fossil fuels are non-renewable.
Forestry
India's land area includes regions with high rainfall to dry deserts, Coast line to Alpine regions. Around 21 percent of the total geographical area consists of Forests. Due to variations in climatic conditions and differences in altitude, different types of Forest are present in India including Tropical, Swamps, Mangrove and Alpine. Variety of forest vegetation is large. Forests are the main source of Fire woods, Paper, Spices, Drugs, Herbs, Gums and more. Forests contribute significant amount to nation's GDP.
Fish
India has a long history in fishing and aquaculture. India has rich marine and inland water resources. It has an 8129 km long coastline. Inland fishery is carried out in Rivers, Reservoirs and Lakes. In Indian rivers more than 400 species of fish are found and many species are economically important. Shrimps, Sardines, Mackerels, Carangid, Croakers and other varieties are available. Major Fish species available are Carp, Catfish, Murrel and Weed fish.[12] India is one of the major marine fish producer. In 2012-2013, 9 Lakh tonnes of Marine products was exported.
Main article: Fishing in India
Coal
Main article: Coal mining in India
Coal mining in India started in 1774 through East India Company in the Raniganj Coalfield along the Western bank of Damodar Riverin the Indian State of West Bengal . Growth of the Indian coal mining started when steam locomotives were introduced in 1853. Production increased to Million tonnes. Production reached 30 million tonnes in 1946. After Independence, National Coal Development Corporation was set up and colleries were owned by Railways. India consumes coal mainly for Power sector. Other industries like cement, fertilizer, chemical and paper rely coal for energy requirements.
Natural gas
As per the Ministry of petroleum, Government of India, India has 1,437 billion cubic metres (50.7×1012 cu ft) of confirmed natural gas reserves as of April 2010. A huge mass of India's natural gas production comes from the western offshore regions, particularly the Mumbai High complex. The onshore fields in Assam, Andhra Pradesh, and Gujarat states are also major producers of natural gas. As per EIA data, India produced 996 billion cubic feet (2.82×1010 m3) of natural gas in 2004. India imports small amounts of natural gas. In 2004, India consumed about 1,089×109 cu ft (3.08×1010 m3) of natural gas, the first year in which the country showed net natural gas imports. During 2004, India imported 93×109 cu ft (2.6×109 m3) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qata
ABIOTIC RESORCES
Metallic minerals
Metallic minerals are the minerals which contain one or more metallic elements. They occur in rare, naturally formed concentrations known as mineral deposits. Metallic minerals available from India are Zinc, Iron ore, Manganese ore, Gold, Bauxite, Silver, Lead, Tin, Copper and Chromite.[20]
Copper
Copper has been used since ancient times. Details of Copper mining and metallurgy are available in ancient works like Arthashastra. Copper is mainly used in Industrial applications, Electrical/Electronic equipments and Consumer products such as utensils. Major resources of Copper are available at Rajasthan, Madhya pradesh and Jharkhand. As on 2010, India had 1.56 billion tonnes of Copper ore. India is one of the 20 major Copper producers. In 2008, India produced 7,10,000 tonnes of copper.Hindustan Copper Limited, a public sector company is the only producer of primary refined copper. Post-pillar method and Blast hole stoping method are used for Mining. Some of the domestic demand is met through scrap recycling. In India, Copper scrap is recycled through Direct melting, which is a hazardous process.
Zinc . Zinc is a bluish-white,lustrous diamagnetic metal.It is also a fair conductor of Electricity. Charaka Samhita. Ancient Zinc smelting technique was found at a zinc production site in Zawar, Rajasthan. Zinc is recovered from a number of different zinc ores. The types of zinc ores include sulfide, carbonate, silicate and oxide It is used in corrosive resistant coating for Iron and Steel. Also used in Automotive, Electrical and Machinery industries. India is the World's fourth largest Zinc reserve as in 2014 ]Hindustan Zinc Limited is the main producer of Zinc in India. Most of the resources are available in Rajasthan. Minor amount of resources are available in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra states.
Iron ore
India is the World's third biggest exporter of Iron ore as in 2013 As on 2010, India had 27 billion tonnes or resource (including Hematite and Magnetite). Major amount of Hematite is found in Orissa, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Goa. Minor amount of Hematite is found in Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Major amount of Magnetite is found in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu. Minor amount of Magnetite is found in Assam, Bihar, Goa, Jharkhand, Kerala, Maharashtra, Meghalaya and Nagaland. Mining is done by opencast method. Iron ore is mainly used for manufacturing of Pig iron, Sponge iron and Steel. It is also used in coal washeries, cement and glass industries.] The public sector companies like National Mineral Development Corporation and Steel Authority of India contribute to 25% of the total production. Private companies including Tata Steel provides major contribution.
Chromite
It is an oxide of Chromium and Iron. It is the only commercial source of Chromium. As on 2010, India had 200 million tonnes of resource. Major amount of resources are available from Orissa (Cuttack and Jajpur districts). Minor amount of resources are available from Manipur, Nagaland, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. In 2009-2010, India produced 3.41 million tonnes and ranked second in world production.] It is mostly mined by opencast method. Chromium provides additional strength to the alloys and it is resistant to corrosion. So it is mainly used in Metallurgical applications. It can withstand sudden temperature changes makes it use in Refractories. It is also used in Chemical applications.
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