RAS question
Beryllium in Rajasthan is found in which area?
Correct answer: (A) Udaipur-Ajmer belt.
In Rajasthan, beryllium-bearing beryl is found in the Udaipur-Ajmer belt, with Bhilwara also part of the same pegmatite-rich occurrence zone.
Explanation
Beryllium in Rajasthan is linked to beryl, not to petroleum or copper fields. The Geological Survey of India describes beryl as a silicate of beryllium and aluminium and the principal source of beryllium metal. It further records that Rajasthan is India’s principal beryl-producing state and that beryl occurs with mica pegmatites in the mica mines of Ajmer, Udaipur and Bhilwara districts. The mineral is associated with pegmatite rocks in the Aravalli region, especially the Udaipur-Ajmer-Bhilwara belt. So the best answer among the options is the Udaipur-Ajmer belt.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) Barmer is not part of this recorded beryl occurrence zone; the option points to an oil area, whereas the question is about beryllium-bearing beryl in pegmatites.
- (C) Khetri is associated here with copper, but the Geological Survey of India places beryl in mica pegmatites of Ajmer, Udaipur and Bhilwara districts.
- (D) Jaisalmer is linked in the option to gas, while beryllium-bearing beryl is recorded in the Ajmer-Udaipur-Bhilwara pegmatite belt.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan’s mineral distribution, especially the habit of linking a mineral to its ore, host rock and belt. It recurs in RAS because mineral-location questions often distinguish Aravalli pegmatite minerals from western Rajasthan’s oil and gas resources.