NEW DELHI, 28 September (H.S.): Production of some key minerals in

the country has continued to witness strong growth during FY 2024-25

(April-August), after reaching record production levels in FY 2023-24.

Iron ore account for about 70% of the

total MCDR mineral production by value. Production of iron ore was 274 million

metric tons (MMT) in FY 2023-24. As per provisional data, production of iron

ore has increased from 108 MMT in FY 2023-24 (April-August) to 116 MMT in FY

2024-25 (April-August), showing a healthy 7.4% growth. Production of manganese

ore has jumped by 15.4% to 1.5 MMT in FY 2024-25 (April-August) from 1.3 MMT

during the corresponding period of previous year.

In the non-ferrous metal sector,

primary aluminium production in FY 2024-25 (April-August) posted a growth of

1.3% over the corresponding period last year, increasing to 17.49 lakh ton (LT)

in FY 2024-25 (April-August) from 17.26 LT in FY 2023-24 (April-August). During

the same comparative period, refined copper production has grown by 5.8% from

1.91 LT to 2.02 LT.

India is the 2nd largest

aluminium producer, among top-10 producer in refined copper and 4th largest

iron ore producer in the world. Continued growth in production of iron ore in

the current financial year reflects the robust demand conditions in the user

industry viz. steel. Coupled with growth in aluminium and copper, these growth

trends point towards continued strong economic activity in user sectors such as

energy, infrastructure, construction, automotive and machinery.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Nimish kumar