RAS question
Raniganj coalfield, the first coalfield to be commercially exploited in India, is in:
Correct answer: (C) West Bengal (Bardhaman/Paschim Bardhaman district).
Raniganj Coalfield, the first coalfield commercially exploited in India, is in West Bengal, in the Bardhaman/Paschim Bardhaman region.
Explanation
Raniganj is the answer because it is the coalfield named in the standard account of the beginning of commercial coal mining in India. The Ministry of Coal traces India's commercial coal mining history to 1774, when M/s Sumner and Heatly of the East India Company began mining in the Raniganj Coalfield along the western bank of the Damodar. Raniganj Coalfield is located in Paschim Bardhaman, formerly Burdwan, in West Bengal, and mainly produces non-coking coal. The Damodar Valley link is useful for exams: Raniganj and Jharia are both associated with this coal-bearing belt, but they fall in different present-day states.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Odisha is associated in the options with Talcher, not with Raniganj Coalfield.
- (B) Madhya Pradesh is linked here with Singrauli, which is partly in MP, whereas Raniganj is placed in West Bengal.
- (D) Jharkhand is associated with Jharia in the Damodar Valley, but Raniganj belongs to the West Bengal side of the coal belt.
Concept
This tests the geography of India's coalfields, especially the Damodar Valley concentration and the state-wise location of major coalfields. It recurs in RAS because mineral-resource locations are a high-yield map-and-economy crossover area.