Answer: Ferrous minerals are those metallic minerals that contain iron in them. Some examples of ferrous minerals include iron, manganese, chromite, etc. which provide a strong base for metallurgical industries. India has sufficiently large reserves as well as production capacity of ferrous minerals. In fact, India has one of the largest reserves of iron ore in Asia. The types of iron ore found in India are hematite and magnetite which, due to their superior quality, are in high demand in the international markets. Distribution of Iron ore in India Iron ore mines in India occur mostly in close proximity to the coal fields in the northeastern plateau region of the country and almost 95% of total reserves are located in the States of Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Goa, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. Odisha-Jharkhand Belt:

• In Odisha, the hill ranges of Sundergarh, Mayurbhanj, and Jhar contain most of the iron ore deposits. The major mines in the state are Gurumahisani, Sulaipet, Badampahar (Mayurbhanj), Kiruburu(Kendujhar), and Bonai(Sundergarh).
• In Jharkhand, similar hills contain some of the oldest and most important iron ore mines of the country such as Noamundi and Gua, which are located in east and west Singhbhum district.

Durg-Bastar-Chandrapur Belt:

• The Jharkhand belt further extends to Durg, Dantewada, and Bailadila in Chattisgarh, and high-quality hematite ore is found in the Bailadila hills of the Bastar district.
• Dalli and Rajhara in Durg district are the important mines of the Country.
• Chandrapur lies in the State of Maharashtra.

Ballari-Chitradurga- Chikkamagaluru-Tumakuru belt in Karnataka:

• It has large reserves of iron ore. Iron ores are found in the Sandur-Hospet area of Ballari district, Baba Budan hills, and Kudremukh in Chikkamagaluru district and parts of Shivamogga, Chitradurg and Tumakuru districts.

Maharashtra-Goa belt:

• This includes the state of Goa and Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra, which contain ores of not very high quality but are exploited very efficiently.
• Chandrapur and Bhandara are other districts with notable iron ore deposits in the State of Maharashtra.

Other regions:

• Karimnagar and Warangal districts of Telangana, Kurnool, Cuddapah, and Anantapur districts of Andhra Pradesh, Salem and Nilgiris districts of Tamil Nadu are other iron mining regions.

Most of these mines are located in regions that are also abundant in coal and manganese deposits, which are important for production of the steel. Consequently, most of India’s steel production capacity is located in these regions.