GRANITE RESERVES IN INDIA

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Granite is a minor mineral defined under Section 3(e) of the Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Act, 1957 and all powers to grant mineral concessions for granite are with the State Government concerned. As per the National Mineral Policy, 1993 the Central Government have thrown open the exploration and exploitation of all non-ferrous and non-atomic minerals including granite to private entrepreneurs. Government is making all efforts to increase investment in the mining sector by creating investor friendly climate and removing bottlenecks to attract such investment.

Government have also notified the Granite Conservation and Development Rules 1999 to ensure systematic and scientific mining of granite. As per National Mineral Inventory prepared by the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), a subordinate office of the Ministry of Mines, the State-wise recoverable reserves of granite are given below:-

(In thousand cubic metre)

All India	1027421
Andhra Pradesh	2300
Assam	205520
Bihar	19105
Gujarat	23560
Haryana	13600
Karnataka	202986
Kerala	544
Maharashtra	326561
Orissa	7588
Rajasthan	201692
Tamil Nadu	20340
West Bengal	3621

As per the information furnished by IBM, the export of granite and products thereof during the last three years is as follows:-

Year	Quantity in tonnes	Value (Rs. in crores)
1999-2000	1489167	1564
2000-2001	1582170	1860
2001-2002	1673862	1874

 

The export statistics quoted in the table indicate that the export of granite has not declined during the last three years.