India's mineral production rises 8% in Feb

New Delhi: India's mineral output rose 8 per cent in February as compared to the year-ago period, the government said on Thursday.

The index of mineral production of the mining and quarrying sector for February 2024 at 139.6 is 8 per cent than February last year.

The cumulative growth for the April-February period of 2023-24 over the corresponding period of the previous year is 8.2 per cent, as per the provisional statistics of Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), the mines ministry said in a statement.

In February, the production of coal was 966 lakh tonnes, lignite 42 lakh tonnes, natural gas (utilised) 2,886 million cubic metre, petroleum (crude) 23 lakh tonne, among others, it said.

The minerals that showed positive growth include gold, copper conc, bauxite, chromite, phosphorite, limestone and coal.

"Other important minerals showing negative growth include iron ore and lead conc," the statement added. PTI SID TRB