New Delhi, Jan 1 (Agency) Driven primarily by iron ore, manganese ore and coal among others, India’s mineral production increased 13% year-on-year in the month of October 2023. “The index of mineral production of mining and quarrying sector for the month of October, 2023 at 127.4, is 13.1 % higher as compared to the level in the month of October, 2022,” Ministry of Mines said in a release on Monday. With 67% year-on-year growth in production during October 2023, iron ore value went up to Rs 8,411 crore from Rs 3,518 crore in October 2022.
As per the provisional statistics of Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), the cumulative growth in mineral production for the period April-October, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of the previous year stood at 9.4%. Important minerals showing positive growth during October, 2023 over October, 2022 included iron ore (66.8%), manganese ore (33.1%), gold (19.6%), coal (18.5%) and limestone (14%). Important minerals showing negative growth in October included lignite (-0.8%) copper conc. (-4.6%), bauxite (-13.3%), chromite (-24.2%), and phosphorite (-38.6%).