Previous Year Question
Out of 1,319 reported mines in India as of 2021-22, the highest number, 263 mines, was located in which of the following states?
Correct Answer: A
Detailed Solution
Madhya Pradesh had 263 reporting mines in 2021-22. The Government of India's Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), in the Indian Minerals Yearbook 2022 – Madhya Pradesh, explicitly records that there were 263 reporting mines in Madhya Pradesh in 2021-22 in the case of MCDR minerals. The IBM table records 223 reporting mines in 2019-20, 241 in 2020-21 and 263 in 2021-22.
Here, “reporting mines” does not mean the total number of every type of small and large mine. The note to the same IBM table states that the figure excludes fuel and minor minerals and primarily relates to mines reporting under the Mineral Conservation and Development Rules (MCDR). Therefore, figures such as 1,319 and 263 should not be interpreted as the total number of all mines in the entire Indian mining universe.
Madhya Pradesh is an important mineral-producing state. According to IBM, minerals found and produced in the state include diamond, copper ore, manganese ore, limestone, bauxite, phosphorite and iron ore.