RAS question
Rajasthan contributes approximately what percentage of India's mineral production by value?
Correct answer: (A) 15%.
Rajasthan contributes approximately 15% of India's mineral production by value when atomic, fuel and minor minerals are excluded.
Explanation
IBM's 2023-24 provisional figures compare Rajasthan's mineral production value of 216,709,400 thousand rupees with India's 1,418,034,586 thousand rupees, excluding atomic, fuel and minor minerals. Dividing Rajasthan's value by the all-India value gives about 15.3%, so 15% is the closest option. The Ministry of Mines' National Mineral Scenario page uses the same frame of MCDR mineral production and shows Rajasthan as a major state in the mid-teen share of production value for 2023-24. This is why 22% is not the answer: it would materially overstate Rajasthan's share under this dataset.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) 7% is too low because Rajasthan's 216,709,400 thousand rupees out of India's 1,418,034,586 thousand rupees works out to about 15.3%.
- (C) 22% overstates Rajasthan's share; the cited 2023-24 provisional values place it near 15%, not above one-fifth of the all-India total.
- (D) 35% is far too high because it would imply more than one-third of India's mineral production value, while the given calculation is only about 15.3%.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan's share in India's mineral economy, a recurring RAS geography theme because mineral output links state resources with national production patterns. The trap is to use the correct scope: value of MCDR minerals excluding atomic, fuel and minor minerals.