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Bhandara and Ratnagiri districts. The disadvantage to these mines is that they are located far from
steel plants. The manganese belt of Madhya Pradesh extends to belts in Balaghat-Chhindwara-
Nimar-Mandla and Jhabua districts. Andhra Pradesh, Goa, and Jharkhand are other minor
producers of manganese.

Bauxite

Bauxite is a mineral bearing rock often used in making aluminum.

Bauxite is found mainly in tertiary deposits and is associated with

laterite rocks occurring extensively either on the plateau or hill

ranges of peninsular India and also in the coastal tracts of the

country. Odisha happens to be the largest producer of Bauxite.

Kalahandi and Sambalpur districts are the leading producers.

The other two areas which have been increasing their production Bauxite
are Bolangir and Koraput. The patlands of Jharkhand in Lohardaga

have rich deposits. Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra are other major

producers. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Goa are minor producers of bauxite.

Copper Copper
Mica
Copper is softer than Iron but harder than Zinc and can be
olished to a bright finish. It is an indispensable metal in the
lectrical industry for making wires, electric motors,
transformers and generators. It is alloyable, malleable and
ductile. It is also mixed with gold to provide strength to
jewellery. The copper deposits mainly occur in Singhbhum
district in Jharkhand, Balaghat district in Madhya Pradesh and
Jhunjhunu and Alwar districts in Rajasthan. Minor producers of
Copper are Agnigundala in Guntur District, Chitradurg and
Hasan districts.

Mica

Mica is a sheet mineral used in glass and electronic equipment. It can
be split into very thin sheets which are tough and flexible. Mica in
India is produced in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan
followed by Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. In
Jharkhand high quality mica is obtained in a belt extending over a
distance of about 150 km, in length and about 22 km, in width in
lower Hazaribagh plateau.

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