Key facts

  • India has a geographical area of about 32.87 lakh sq km, and its resource base is shaped by the Himalayas, the Indo-Gangetic alluvium, the Peninsular...
  • The Forest Survey of India reported 8,09,537 sq km of forest and tree cover in ISFR 2021, equal to 24.62% of India's geographical area.
  • The National Forest Policy 1988 targets 33% forest cover nationally, with higher emphasis in mountain areas.
  • India's utilisable water resource is about 1,123 BCM, split into 690 BCM surface water and 433 BCM groundwater.
  • Alluvial soil covers about 43% of India's reported land area and black/regur soil about 15%, making them central to wheat, rice, sugarcane and cotton...

Key Points at a Glance

  1. 1

    India has a geographical area of about 32.87 lakh sq km, and its resource base is shaped by the Himalayas, the Indo-Gangetic alluvium, the Peninsular shield and a long coastline.

  2. 2

    The Forest Survey of India reported 8,09,537 sq km of forest and tree cover in ISFR 2021, equal to 24.62% of India's geographical area.

  3. 3

    The National Forest Policy 1988 targets 33% forest cover nationally, with higher emphasis in mountain areas.

  4. 4

    India's utilisable water resource is about 1,123 BCM, split into 690 BCM surface water and 433 BCM groundwater.

  5. 5

    Alluvial soil covers about 43% of India's reported land area and black/regur soil about 15%, making them central to wheat, rice, sugarcane and cotton agriculture.

  6. 6

    India has about 401 billion tonnes of geological coal resources as of April 2025 and is among the world's major producers of coal, iron ore and bauxite.

  7. 7

    India's renewable-energy base includes the 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030 commitment and a rapidly growing solar-wind sector.

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India's Resource Base

India's natural resources include water, soils, forests, minerals and energy resources. Their distribution is not uniform. The Indo-Gangetic plains are important for fertile alluvium and groundwater, the Peninsular shield is important for coal, iron ore, bauxite and mica, while the Himalayas and coastal zones support hydropower, biodiversity, fisheries and offshore petroleum.

For objective exams, resources can be remembered as renewable and non-renewable. Renewable resources include forests, water, soil, solar energy, wind energy and tidal energy. Non-renewable resources include coal, petroleum, natural gas and metallic or non-metallic minerals. This classification helps in questions on conservation, energy security and industrial location.

Three resource patterns are especially high-yield: Gondwana formations in peninsular India are linked with coal and several minerals; alluvial deposits in the northern plains are linked with soil fertility and groundwater; and coasts are linked with fisheries, mangroves, ports, offshore oil and renewable-energy potential. The practical point is simple: India's agriculture, industry and transport systems follow the map of resources.

Remember: resource geography is tested through location-resource-use links, such as "black soil - cotton", "bauxite - aluminium" and "Bombay High - petroleum".

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