Coalfields in India may be divided into two main categories:
1. Gondwana Coalfields: Strata containing coal extend from Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa to Madhya Pradesh.
2. Tertiary Coalfields: Found in Assam and Rajasthan.
1. Gondwana Coalfields
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The Gondwana coal is said to be 250 million years old and includes mainly coking, non coking and bituminous coal. It contains sulphur and
Distribution of Coal according to State
States (a) Jharkhand
(b) Orissa
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(c) West Bengal
(d) Chhattisgarh
Bihar and Jharkhand
(a) Jharia fields are the most important due to the abundance, high quality and accessibility. It is situated to the south west of Dhanbad.
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(b) Bokaro field lies to the west and produces about a million tonnes of coal.
(c) North and South Karanpura.
(d) Giridih produces good quality coal.
Orissa
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(a)The Talcher Coalfield is one of the oldest coalfields and third most important after Raniganj and Jharia coalfields. Most of the coal is of low grade and is suitable for steam and gas production. It supplies coal to Rourkela Steel Plant.
(b) Another important coalfield is the Rampur- Hingir coalfield lying in Sambalpur and Sundergarh District.
West Bengal
Raniganj is the most important coalfield in the state and the second largest in the country. The total coal reserves are about 2691 crore tonnes. The non- coking coal is mainly used by the railways.
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Coal is being supplied to Durgapur and Bandel. Phosphorus in small quantities and is generally free from moisture. 80 out of 113 major coalfields are located in the Gondwana region.
Areas Where Found
The basins of some rivers have deposits of this type :
(a) Damodar Basin (West Bengal)
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(b) The Mahanadi Basin (Madhya Pradesh and Orissa)
(c) The Son Basin (Madhya Pradesh and Bihar)
(d) The Godavari Basin (Andhra Pradesh)
(e) Narmada, Indravati, etc.
The main coalfields are:
(a) Singroli and Suhagpur
(b) Rampur, Tatapani
(c) Sundergarh, Korba
(d) Raigarh
Andhra Pradesh
Most of the coalmines are located in the Godavari Delta and the largest deposits are found in Singareni, Adilabad and Karimnagar. Coal is supplied to Thermal Power Stations at Ramagundam and Nellore.
Maharashtra
(а) The important coalfields are located at Chandrapur, Ballarpur and Warsova.
(b) There are large amounts of steam and gas coal in Nagpur district. Most of the coal found here is used by the railways and the Thermal Power Stations at Kalyan, Trombay, Bhusaval, etc.
2. Tertiary Coalfields
The important areas where tertiary coal is found are: Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal (hilly region) Jammu and Kashmir and Tamil Nadu.
The coal produced in Namchuk, Namphuk and Makum coalfields is of good semi-coking coal with a high percentage of phosphorus. Coal is mainly used by the railways and tea-factories in Assam and West Bengal.
Lignite a brown coal is mined at Neyvelli (Tamil Nadu), Raisi (Kashmir) and Pallau (South Rajasthan) Statewise Reservation of Coal
|
State |
Reserve (million tonnes) |
|
|
1. |
Jharkhand |
160.00 |
|
2. |
Orissa |
58,012.22 |
|
3. |
Madhya Pradesh |
17,956.78 |
|
4. |
West Bengal |
26,419.25 |
|
5. |
Andhra Pradesh |
15,636.09 |
|
6. |
Maharashtra |
8,080.69 |
|
7. |
Uttar Pradesh |
1,061.80 |
|
8. |
Meghalaya |
459.43 |
|
9. |
Assam |
340.14 |
|
10. |
Arunachal Pradesh |
90.23 |