RAS question
Zawar mines near Udaipur are ancient mines of which metal?
Correct answer: (A) Zinc-Lead.
Zawar Mines near Udaipur are ancient zinc-lead mines.
Explanation
Zawar is identified with zinc-lead, not with a single precious metal. Zawar ranks among the world's oldest zinc-lead mines, dates back to the 6th century BC, and is operated by Hindustan Zinc today. Hindustan Zinc's Zawar Mine page gives the same classification: it describes Zawar Mines as the world's oldest zinc-lead mining belt, located in Rajasthan, and lists the material produced as zinc concentrate and lead concentrate. That is why the paired answer, Zinc-Lead, is the precise RAS answer. Silver appears in the wider output profile, but the mine's core identity in the question is zinc-lead.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) Silver is not the best answer because it is treated as a byproduct, while Zawar's mine identity is zinc-lead.
- (C) Gold is wrong because gold is not found here.
- (D) Copper is wrong because the question is about Zawar near Udaipur, while copper is associated with Khetri.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan's mineral-resource geography, especially the mapping of major mining belts to their metals. It recurs in RAS because locations such as Zawar and Khetri are standard, high-yield examples in Rajasthan economic geography.