Ilmenite and rutile, abundantly available in certain coastal tracts of India, are rich sources of which one of the following?

Question

Question

This question was previously asked in

UPSC Civil Services Prelims 2023: General Studies (SET - A - Held on 28 May)

Answer 1

The correct answer is option 4.

Key Points

Ilmenite (FeO.TiO2) and rutile (TiO2) are the two chief minerals of titanium. Hence option 4 is correct.
Ilmenite and rutile along with other heavy minerals are important constituents of beach sand deposits found right from Saurashtra coast (Gujarat) in the west to Digha coast, West Bengal in the east.
These minerals are concentrated in five well-defined zones:
- Over a stretch of 22 km between Neendakara and Kayamkulam, Kollam district, Kerala (known as 'Chavara' deposit after the main mining centre).
- Over a stretch of 6 km from the mouth of River Valliyar to Colachal, Manavalakurichi and little beyond in Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu (known as MK deposit).
- On Chatrapur coast stretching to about 18 km between Rushikulya river mouth and Gopalpur lighthouse with an average width of 1.4 km in Ganjam district, Odisha (known as 'OSCOM' deposit after IREL's Orissa Sands Complex)
- Brahmagiri deposit stretches for 30 km from Girala nala to Village Bhabunia with an average width of 1.91 km in Puri district, Odisha.
- Bhavanapadu coast between Nilarevu and Sandipeta with 25 km length and 700 m average width in Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh.
The AMD of the Department of Atomic Energy has been carrying out exploration of these mineral deposits.