Minerals of Haryana | HPSC Preparation: All subjects - HPSC (Haryana) PDF Download

Mineral Wealth of Haryana

Haryana state is rich in mineral wealth with various mineral occurrences. Some of the significant minerals found in the state are china clay, limestone, dolomite, quartz/silica sand, quartzite, and slate. Additionally, noteworthy minerals like barytes, calcite, feldspar, marble, copper, tin, and tungsten are also found. Building stones such as granite, slate, marble, quartzite, and sandstone are conspicuous. Moreover, several minerals in minor quantities have also been reported in the state.

Alkaline Earth

• Alkaline earth refers to soil that contains excessive exchangeable sodium or has been affected by sodium salts, which are capable of alkaline hydrolysis, such as carbonates or bicarbonates of sodium. 
• These salts occur as efflorescence on the surface of the earth, giving it a barren appearance and reducing crop production. 
• However, when the concentration of constituent salts increases, these efflorescences can be an economical source of sodium carbonate. The district of Mahendragarh in Haryana has extensive alkaline efflorescence around Gohoro and Durga-ka-Nangal.

Arsenopyrite

• The Alwar Formation in the FirozpurJhirka and Nuh tehsils of Gurgaon District contains dark grey quartzite bands in which arsenopyrite is disseminated. 
• Arsenic, a metal found in arsenopyrite, is utilized in the pharmaceutical industry.

Baryte

• Barite is a mineral that is highly valued for its chemical stability and high density. It is frequently used in the preparation of muds required for drilling oil wells. 
• Additionally, it has important uses in the paint and lithopore industries, as well as being a source material for barium chemicals. Barite is also used as a filler in the manufacturing of paper and rubber. 
• In the state, barite is present in small amounts as thin veins or patches along the foliation planes in calc-schist rocks of the Ajabgarh Group of the Delhi Supergroup in the Masnuta and Bail-ki-Dhani areas of Mahendragarh District. It has also been reported in Haripur in Ambala District.

Beryl

• Beryl is the principal source of beryllium metal which is lighter than alluminium. When alloyed with copper and after suitable heat treatment, the alloy develops high tensile strength and ability to withstand repeated stress. 
• Since the advent of atomic energy, beryl has become very important because beryllium is used as a moderator in nuclear reactor. A small quantity is used in the chemical industry in the manufacture of beryllium salts and ceramic glaze. 
• The green transparent variety of beryl is a precious stone and known as emerald. In Haryana, large crystals of beryl have been recorded from a few pegmatites adjacent to Bail-ki-Dhani, Masnuta and Sarai in Mahendragarh District, but no workable deposits exist in the area.

Building Stone

The slate deposits in Haryana are well-known and are widely extracted for various purposes such as decorative, building, and ornamental stones, which are a significant source of foreign currency. The slates generally have greyish and greyish black hues, but black, greenish black, and multicolored slates are also available. Some slates have stains of hydrous ferric oxide and come in deep brick-red, greyish purple, and brownish colors. The multicolored slates are mainly exported. Additionally, Haryana has other popular building materials like marble, limestone, sandstone, quartzite, and granite.

1. Slate: Slate in Haryana is primarily found in the Ajabgarh Group of Delhi Supergroup, with major deposits located in the Mahendragarh District near Kund, Bahali, and Rampura. Kund alone has estimated slate reserves of 8.78 million tonnes, of which almost 60% is multicoloured (classified according to UNFC as 334). Other significant deposits can be found near Bujhar and Ganiar in the same area. Poor quality slate bands, around 7.5cm to 12.5cm thick, are also present in Basai Meo in the Gurgaon District. These slate deposits are used extensively as ornamental, building, and decorative stones and are a valuable source of foreign currency for Haryana.

2. Marble: Impure calc-silicate rocks or micaceous impure marble of the Ajabgarh Group are primarily located in Mahendragarh District and can be found at Dholera, Meghot Hala, Dhancholi, Gangutana, and Beharipur, which extend for approximately 3km and have a thickness of about 100m. Additionally, banded variegated marble of different shades has also been reported. These deposits are being quarried for making table-tops and other decorative building materials. Marble of different shades is also present in Gangutana, Masnuta, Bail-ki-Dhani, Islampur, Khalra, Rasulpur, Gohoro, Niaz Alipur, and Dhonkhera.

3. Quartzite: High-quality quartzite suitable for use as building material is found in the Alwar and Ajabgarh Groups. Numerous quarries are located in Faridabad and Gurgaon districts along the Ajabgarh Group, while in the Guraora-Guriani area of Rohtak District, quarries are being worked out. In Mahendragarh District, quarries are found in Mandlana, Berondla, Luninasibpur, Gohoro, and near Gaonri. Fissile quartzites are quarried for roofing and other masonry blocks in various places of the district such as Sareli, Tehla, Mukandpura, Panchnota, and Sarai. Moreover, almost all the quartzite hills of the district are used for railway ballasts and concrete aggregates, especially at Balina, Rajawas, Khaspur, Atela, Jhojhu Kalan, Azamnagar, Tankri, and Dantal.

4. Granite: Granite inselbergs in Haryana are located in the Bhiwani District, with significant deposits near Dulheri, Khanak, Dadam, Dharan, Riwasa and Tosham. There are also isolated hillocks of granite to the southwest of this cluster at Nakkipur and Pahari in the same district. In Mahendragarh District, granite can be found at Dhanota, Kultajpur, Maroli, and Mukundpur. These deposits are primarily quarried to meet local demand for construction materials.

5. Sandstone: Ambala District is known for its good quality building material derived from sandstone beds present in Kasauli, Dagshai, Subathu and certain bands in Nahans. In addition to building material, some of these sandstones are also used to make locally produced stone bowls called Kundis. Near Kalka, sandstone used for building material can also be found. The Ghaggar River carries boulders, cobbles, and pebbles which are used for construction work and are worked out near Panchkula and Ambala districts.

Calcite

• Calcite veins are typically found with Ajabgarh rocks, mainly in Mahendragarh District. In the Raghunathpura area, a high-quality calcite vein of about 50m long and 10m wide occurs alongside quartz veins, and another calcite vein, measuring about 20m long and 5m wide, has also been found nearby. However, Iceland Spar, which is the purest and most transparent type of calcite, is rare. 
• Near Masnuta, a calcite vein of about 45m long and 1m wide is present along with pegmatite. All of these veins have been quarried in the past. Two to three veins of calcite are found in the Mundia hill and Sonaro-ki-Pahari of the Khalra group of hills, Bail-ki-Dhani and Panchnota. 
• Transparent calcite with white milky calcite has been reported from the Rasulpur hill. Transparent, pure crystallized calcite is mainly used for optical instruments, while the poorer quality calcite is currently used to upgrade limestone.

China Clay

• Clay deposits in Faridabad and Gurgaon districts have been formed by the intrusion of pegmatite in the Delhi Supergroup. The clay is found at important sites like Alipur, Arangpur, Ghamrauj, Ghosgarh, and Sikandarpur. 
• There are also other deposits near Kasan, Ghata Manger, and Nathupura. The clay mainly contains poorly crystallized kaolinite with a small amount of quartz. Chemical analysis shows that the clay has over 60% silica and around 20% alumina, making it refractory in nature.

Copper

• Copper deposits have been discovered in various locations in Mahendragarh District, including Khodana, Teejanwali hill, and GolwaGangutana. In Gurgaon District, chalcopyrite grains can be found along with pyrite, pyrrhotite, and arsenopyrite near Rojka Meo and Indri. 
• The Ajabgarh Group rocks in Datla hill near Raghunathpura, Ghataser, Dondkhoro, Gohoro, Meghot-Hala, Zainpur, Dholera, and Pholera villages in southern Mahendragarh District also contain malachite stains, while pyrite and chalcopyrite specks are visible in the marble of Dhani.

Friable Quartzite

• Quartzite that is easily crushable due to high silica content is useful in making glass. Weathering of this quartzite produces good quality morrum and angular sand suitable for building purposes. 
• These materials are found in the many nala beds that cross the Alwar quartzite hills in Faridabad and Gurgaon districts. Sand quarries in the Arangpur area have reached depths of up to 20 meters. Gritty quartzite at Bajada Pahari is also friable, but its extent is limited. 
• There is a narrow zone of friable quartzite, suitable for low-grade glass manufacture only, west of Manesar. In the Bhiwani District, a white friable quartzite that is up to four meters thick and 200 meters in length occurs near Pachopa Kalan, and the friable zone is confined to a maximum depth of one meter from the surface.

Garnet

• The Ajabgarh schists and gneisses found in certain areas of Mahendragarh District have a high concentration of garnet. These garnets are pink in color, and vary in size from tiny grains to one centimeter in diameter. 
• They are often found in association with staurolite crystals of different shapes and sizes. In some areas near the Alwar micaceous quartzite of Sareli-Tehla ridge, larger garnet crystals have formed, but their concentration is low. 
• In Gurgaon District, there are thin bands of gray, soft, garnet-rich mica-schist west of Haryahera. The garnets in this area are usually large, around 3cm in diameter, but smaller crystals can also be found. The light-colored schists west of Raisina contain a higher concentration of garnet.

Gold

• The Geological Survey of India has reported finding gold in the Siwalik belt and nearby alluvial terrain in parts of Yamuna Nagar and Ambala districts. In Jaffarpur Jafari, Katgarh, and Darpur areas, panned concentrates show values ranging from 0.02 ppm to 2.70 ppm. Biogeochemical samples reveal values ranging between 0.03 ppm and 0.06 ppm Au. 
• In Chandi Mandir, Berwala, Mandhana, and Sabilpur area, only 12 out of 126 unpanned samples from Upper Siwalik and compact Lower Siwalik have analyzed >0.02 ppm Au, with a maximum of 0.05 ppm. In the terrace material near the Siwaliks, 27 out of 73 samples have analyzed >0.02 ppm, with a maximum of 0.14 ppm. 
• Gold has also been found in rocks hosting sulphide mineralization in the Ajabgarh Group of rocks in Mahendragarh District, with white quartz veins within quartzite analyzing 0.11 ppm to 0.5 ppm gold at Ghataser. 
• Gold has also been reported from veins in the metasediments and granite of the northern block of Tosham Tin-Tungsten prospects, with values ranging from 0.01 ppm to a maximum of 2.86 ppm in ore samples showing incidences of copper, bismuth, and cobalt mineralization.

Graphite

• Graphite can be found in association with schists in the Gurgaon District of Haryana. The graphite occurs as flakes and amorphous carbon in a graphitic schist band west of Sohna, with increasing concentration at greater depths. 
• Dark schist bands near Raisina contain more graphite. In other parts of Gurgaon District, graphite is found in thin schist bands interbedded with quartzite at Baghaul and Haryahera. Graphite is used in the production of brushes for dynamos, as electrodes in electric furnaces, and as a moderator in atomic reactors.
• Gypsum has also been found in Haryana. Investigations by GSI confirmed the presence of bedded gypsum in the Hissar District, occurring interbedded with sand, silt, and clay sediments at Saharwa. The gypsum bands vary in thickness up to 1.5m and have an average CaSO4 content of 60%. 
• Low-grade gypsum, called gypsite, has been found in the Bhiwani District at Dariyapur and Garanpura-Kalan in association with sand, silt, and clay. Gypsum is used as a retarder in cement, in fertilizers, and as a filler in various materials like paper, crayons, paint, rubber, and in the manufacture of plaster of paris. Gypsum occurrences were also reported from the clay bands interbedded with sand layers in Julana area in Jind District and as lumps in the ferruginous clays of the Subathu Formation in Ambala District.
• Small deposits of high phosphorous iron ore can be found in Mahendragarh and Bhiwani Districts in Haryana.

Kankar

• Kankar is a type of accumulation of calcium carbonate found in the alluvial plains or aeolian sands. It has varying degrees of purity and is mostly found in Bhiwani District in Haryana. 
• Kankar deposits can also be found in Mahendragarh, Sirsa, Hissar, and Gurgaon Districts. Kankar occurs in several locations in the District, including Riwasa, Siwani, Kaland, Dadri, Achma, Lahori Jattu, Baliyali, Rupgarh, Mankawas, and Kaunt. The deposits can be either massive or fragmentary and are mostly located in palaeochannel courses and interdunal tracts in the area.

Limestone/ Dolomite

• Limestone is a type of rock primarily made up of calcium carbonate. 
• It is a crucial industrial mineral used in the production of various materials, such as lime, cement chemicals (like soda-ash, caustic soda, bleaching powder, calcium carbide), fertilizers (like ammonium nitrate), and as a flux in metallurgical industries, including iron and steel, and ferro-alloy. 
• In Haryana, limestone and dolomite are mainly found in Mahendragarh and Ambala Districts.