With reference to mineral resources, which of the following statement/s is/are correct? 1. Lithium's inferred resources have been found in Reasi district of Jammu & Kashmir. 2. India is import dependent for many minerals like Lithium, Nickel and Cobalt. Select the correct answer using the code given below:
- (a)Only 2
- (b)Only 1
- (c)Both 1 and 2
- (d)Neither 1 nor 2
Correct — C, Both 1 and 2. In February 2023 the Geological Survey of India announced India's first significant lithium find — about 5.9 million tonnes of inferred (G3-level) resources in the Salal-Haimana area of Reasi district, Jammu & Kashmir, so statement 1 is correct. India also has no meaningful domestic production of several critical minerals and depends almost entirely on imports for lithium, nickel and cobalt (all vital for batteries and electronics), so statement 2 is correct too.
- (a)Only 2 — Understates the case — statement 1 is also correct; the Reasi (J&K) inferred lithium resource was indeed reported in February 2023.
- (b)Only 1 — Ignores India's heavy import dependence for lithium, nickel and cobalt, which statement 2 correctly describes.
- (d)Neither 1 nor 2 — Both statements are factually correct, so rejecting both is wrong.
Lithium, nickel and cobalt are 'critical minerals' — indispensable for lithium-ion batteries, EVs, electronics and clean-energy technology. India has historically imported almost all of these. The 2023 Reasi lithium find (an 'inferred', early-stage G3 estimate, not yet a proven mineable reserve) was significant as India's first notable domestic lithium discovery, feeding the drive for mineral self-reliance.
Both statements read as current-affairs facts from early 2023. Statement 1 is the widely reported Reasi/J&K lithium news; statement 2 is a standard fact about India's import dependence for battery minerals. Neither is exaggerated, so 'Both correct' is the natural answer — resist over-thinking the word 'inferred', which correctly signals an early-stage estimate rather than a proven reserve.
- GSI reported ~5.9 million tonnes of inferred (G3) lithium resources in Reasi district (Salal-Haimana), J&K, in February 2023 — India's first such find.
- 'Inferred' (G3) is a preliminary resource estimate, not yet an economically proven reserve.
- India is heavily import-dependent for lithium, nickel and cobalt — all critical battery minerals.
- To secure supply, India set up Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL) and released a Critical Minerals list.
- Reading 'inferred resources' as a proven, mineable reserve — it is only an early-stage estimate.
- Doubting statement 2 despite India's well-known dependence on imported lithium, nickel and cobalt.
UPPSC/UPSC pair a location-specific mineral discovery with a general resource fact in a two-statement format — verify each statement independently before choosing the code.
In the context of electric vehicle batteries, consider the following elements: I. Cobalt II. Graphite III. Lithium IV. Nickel. How many of the above usually make up battery cathodes?
- (a) Only one
- (b) Only two
- (c) Only three
- (d) All the four
Answer(c) Only three — cobalt, lithium and nickel are used in Li-ion cathodes; graphite is an anode material.
Same critical-mineral theme — lithium, nickel and cobalt (the exact three minerals India imports in statement 2) are the battery-cathode metals driving the demand behind the Reasi find.
- practice — not a real PYQ
India's first significant inferred lithium resource (2023) was reported in which district?
- (a)Reasi, Jammu & Kashmir
- (b)Kolar, Karnataka
- (c)Nalgonda, Telangana
- (d)Korba, Chhattisgarh
Answer(a) Reasi, Jammu & Kashmir — about 5.9 million tonnes of inferred lithium resources (GSI, Feb 2023).
- practice — not a real PYQ
The public-sector joint venture set up to acquire critical and strategic mineral assets abroad for India is:
- (a)NMDC
- (b)KABIL
- (c)MOIL
- (d)Coal India
Answer(b) KABIL (Khanij Bidesh India Ltd) — tasked with securing lithium, cobalt and other critical minerals overseas.