Q110. Which pair of mineral resources is characteristic of the mineral-rich peninsular plateau?
[SSC Selection Post Matriculation Level, 28 July 2025]
(A) Bauxite and manganese
(B) Iron ore and coal
(C) Copper and zinc
(D) Gold and diamond
Answer: (B) Iron ore and coal
Explanation: Iron ore occurs largely in ancient peninsular rocks, while important coalfields occupy Gondwana sedimentary basins in the same broad region. Their spatial proximity has supported steel industries. The plateau contains other minerals too, but iron and coal are especially significant.
Q109. Which is the oldest coalfield in West Bengal?
[SSC CPO, 11 December 2025]
(A) Jharia
(B) Raniganj
(C) Bokaro
(D) Talcher
Answer: (B) Raniganj
Explanation: Raniganj lies in the Damodar Valley of West Bengal and is associated with India’s earliest commercial coal mining. Jharia and Bokaro are in Jharkhand, while Talcher lies in Odisha. These coalfields form part of the eastern Gondwana coal belt.
Q108. Which mineral is particularly important in producing steel alloys?
[MP Police Constable, 5 December 2025]
(A) Zinc
(B) Gypsum
(C) Manganese
(D) Bauxite
Answer: (C) Manganese
Explanation: Manganese is added to steel to help deoxidise the melt and improve mechanical properties. It also forms ferro-manganese alloys used in metallurgy. India’s notable manganese-bearing areas include parts of Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Q107. Consider the statements:
(1) Sand is treated as a minor mineral.
(2) State governments have no powers to make rules for minor minerals.
(3) States may frame rules to prevent illegal extraction of minor minerals.
are correct?
[SSC Junior Engineer Mechanical, 4 December 2025]
(A) 1 and 3 only
(B) 2 and 3 only
(C) 3 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (A) 1 and 3 only
Explanation: Sand is generally governed as a minor mineral under India’s mining framework. States have rule-making responsibilities concerning minor-mineral concessions and enforcement. Consequently, the claim that state governments lack such powers is false, while statements about sand and regulation are true.
Q106. Which organisation and headquarters are correctly matched?
[DSSSB Assistant Section Officer, 18 August 2025]
(A) Geological Survey of India — Kolkata
(B) ONGC — Jaipur
(C) Mineral Exploration Corporation — Chennai
(D) NMDC — Bhopal
Answer: (A) Geological Survey of India — Kolkata
Explanation: The Geological Survey of India is headquartered in Kolkata and carries out geoscientific mapping, geological investigation and mineral-resource assessment. The other organisation-city pairs are incorrect. Its investigations help identify prospective mineral-bearing areas before detailed exploration or mining begins.
Q105. Which Indian plateau is called the ‘Ruhr of India’ for its mineral and industrial resources?
[SSC CPO, 10 December 2025]
(A) Chota Nagpur Plateau
(B) Malwa Plateau
(C) Deccan Plateau
(D) Thar Desert
Answer: (A) Chota Nagpur Plateau
Explanation: The Chota Nagpur Plateau has a high concentration of coal, iron ore and other mineral resources, much like Germany’s historically industrial Ruhr region. This mineral base has encouraged iron and steel plants, engineering industries and associated urban centres.
Q104. Why should coal and petroleum be conserved?
[RRB Group D, 12 December 2025, Shift 2]
(A) They renew rapidly.
(B) Their supplies are unlimited.
(C) They are manufactured in factories.
(D) They are non-renewable resources.
Answer: (D) They are non-renewable resources.
Explanation: Coal and petroleum form over geological timescales from buried organic matter. Human consumption is far faster than their natural replenishment, so they are considered non-renewable. Conservation also reduces waste, energy dependence and some environmental pressures associated with fossil fuels.
Q103. Consider the following about feldspar:
(1) It forms a large share of Earth’s crust.
(2) Some feldspars have a salmon-pink colour.
(3) Magnesium is the most common essential element in all feldspars.
Which are correct?
[UPSC NDA II, 14 September 2025]
(A) 1 only
(B) 1 and 2 only
(C) 2 and 3 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (B) 1 and 2 only
Explanation: Feldspars are among the most abundant rock-forming minerals in Earth’s crust. Some potassium feldspars are pinkish, while feldspar chemistry is dominated by aluminium, silicon and alkali or alkaline-earth elements. Magnesium is not a defining constituent of all feldspars.
Q102. Which state is a leading producer of both bauxite and chromite in India?
[UPSC NDA II, 14 September 2025]
(A) Andhra Pradesh
(B) Madhya Pradesh
(C) Jharkhand
(D) Odisha
Answer: (D) Odisha
Explanation: Odisha combines extensive bauxite-rich plateaus with the Sukinda chromite belt. Bauxite is the main raw material for aluminium, whereas chromite provides chromium for stainless steel and other alloys. The coexistence of these resources makes Odisha unusually important to metallurgical industries.
Q101. Monazite, commonly found in coastal mineral sands, is an important source of which element?
[UPSSSC Preliminary Eligibility Test, 7 September 2025]
(A) Mica
(B) Copper
(C) Thorium
(D) Uranium
Answer: (C) Thorium
Explanation: Monazite is a phosphate mineral containing rare-earth elements and thorium. Concentrations occur in beach placers along parts of India’s coast, especially in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Thorium is strategically significant because it has potential applications in nuclear-energy fuel cycles.
