India ranks fourth in terms of coal production in the world. India, with total coal reserves of more than 300 billion tonnes, has one of the largest coal reserves in the world. Coal is an important non-renewable source of energy which is used to generate electricity in power plants, cement industries, manufacturing steel, fertilizer production, etc. Coal is divided into four types such as Anthracite, Lignite, Peat and Bituminous. The Union government of India has a separate coal ministry which manages the coal reserves throughout the country. Coal India is an Indian state controlled mining company that controls 80% of India’s coal output. In the year 2014-15, India increased the coal output by 32 million tonnes.
This is the list of the top ten largest coal producing states in India.
10. Assam
Assam is the largest of the seven northeastern states of India. The total coal reserves in the state amount to 510.52 million metric tonnes. The major coal reserves in the state are found in Makul coal fields located in the Dibrugarh district and the Dilli-Jaipore coal fields located in the districts of Sibsagarh and Dibrugarh. Other small coal deposits are found in the North Cachar hills, Karbi Anglong and Dhubri district.
9. Meghalaya
Meghalaya is another northeastern state of India. The total coal reserves in the state stand at 576.48 million metric tonnes. The major coal producing areas of the state include Bapung in Jaintia Hills district, Langrin and East Darrangiri in Khasi Hills District and West Darranggiri in Garo Hills District. Meghalaya is a wet region which makes the extraction of coal easier but the lack of mining infrastructure and other problems have constantly posed a challenge to properly exploit this mineral rich state.
8. Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh is the largest state in the Indian union. The total amount of coal reserves possessed by the state is 1,061.80 million metric tonnes. The Singrauli Coalfield spread across the Singrauli and the Sonebhadra districts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh is a major source of coal. The annual coal production in the state is estimated to be about 14.721 million tonnes. U.P is also a leading state in terms of agricultural products.
7. Maharashtra
Maharashtra comes seventh in this list with total coal reserves of 10,882.09 million tonnes. The coal reserves of the state occur in the districts of Nagpur, Wardha, Yavatmal and Chandrapur. Maharashtra accounts for about 9.29% of the total national output of coal even though it possesses just 3.44% of the country’s coal reserves. Maharashtra is a leading industrialized state in India and requires coal to run its various industries and power plants.
6. Telangana
Telangana is a new state that was carved out of Andhra Pradesh in the year 2014. The total coal reserves in the state stand at 22,154.86 million tonnes. The Godavari Valley Coalfield located in Karimnagar, Warangal, and Adilabad and Khammam districts of Telangana is the sole coalfield found in Southern India. This coalfield is located in the Godavari River basin. The coal bearing area of this coalfield has been estimated to be about 11,000 square kilometers.
5. Madhya Pradesh
The central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh is fifth with a total coal reserve of 24,376.26 million tonnes. The Sohagpur Coalfield is the biggest coalfield in Madhya Pradesh. It is located in the Shahdol district of the state in the basin of the Son River and is spread over an area of 3100 square kilometres. Singrauli Coalfield is another coalfield located in the Singrauli district, which extends to the Sonebhadra district of U.P.
4. West Bengal
The total coal reserves in the state of West Bengal stand at 30,615.72 million metric tonnes. The main coal producing regions of the state include Asansol, Raniganj and Bankura. The Raniganj coalfield covers an area of 443.50 square kilometres and is the second largest coalfield in India in terms of reserves. Recently, a large coalfield was discovered in Mejia which is located in the Bankura district.
3. Chattisgarh
Chattisgarh was initially a part of Madhya Pradesh, which was carved into a new state in the year 2000. The total coal reserves present in this state amount to 50,846.15 million metric tonnes. The major coal producing regions of the state are Sonhat, Bisrampur, Korba, Jhilimili, Lakhanpur and Chirimiri. The state accounts for about 16% of the total coal reserves in India.
2. Odisha
Odisha comes second with a staggeringly high amount of coal reserves at 71,447.41 million metric tonnes of coal reserves. Odisha contributes about 13.4% of the country’s total coal production. Talcher and Ranapur-Himgir are the important coal fields of the state. Talcher accounts for 3/4th of the total coal reserves present in Odisha. Talcher is one of the fastest growing mining and industrial complexes in India and is also known as the coal city.
1. Jharkhand
Jharkand occupies the numero uno status with total coal reserves of 80,356.20 million metric tonnes. Jharkand accounts for 38% of the total coal reserves of India. Darla Coalfield located in the state is the most productive coalfield in India. Other main coal producing regions of the state include Rajmahal, Karanpura, Bokaro, Ramgarh and Jharia. Ranapur and Jharsugda are the two secondary coal producing regions of Jharkhand.
Due to high demand, India imports about 15% of its total demand for coal. The government is aiming to decrease this number by increasing the coal production to about 1.5 billion tonnes by 2020.
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