Lithium reserves were found for the first time in the country. Its capacity is 59 lakh (5.9 million) tonnes. 5 gold blocks have also been found along with lithium. This is the first Lithium (G3) site identified by the Geological Survey of India (GSI) in Reasi, Jammu and Kashmir. Lithium is a non-ferrous metal (non-ferrous metal), which is used to make mobile-laptop, electric vehicle (EV) and other chargeable batteries. It is a rare earth element. India is currently completely dependent on other countries for lithium.
Geological Survey of India (GSI) has discovered 5.9 million tonnes of Lithium
Reserve in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir. This metal is used in making electric vehicles and solar panels. A senior government official said the country’s first lithium deposit discovered at Reasi is of excellent quality. The villagers, on the other hand, are hopeful that their future will be bright with this discovery.
Amit Sharma said that the grade of lithium in the general category is 220 parts per million (ppm), while the lithium found in the reserve of Jammu and Kashmir is of more than 550 ppm grade. Along with this, he said that this reserve is about 5.9 million tonnes, which will leave China behind in terms of lithium availability.
Jammu and Kashmir’s Mines Secretary Amit Sharma said, ‘Lithium comes under the category of scarce resource and earlier it was not available in India, due to which we were 100 per cent dependent on its import. The G-3 (advance) study carried out by GSI has revealed that the Lithium deposits present at Salal village (Reasi district) at the foothills of Mata Vaishno Devi Temple are of high quality.
India imports a major part of its requirement. As of 2020, India ranks fourth in the world in terms of lithium imports. India sources about 80% of its lithium-ion batteries from China. India is working on buying stake in lithium rich countries like Argentina, Chile, Australia and Bolivia to become self-sufficient in this sector.
GSI submits report of 51 mineral blocks to state governments
GSI submitted reports of 51 mineral blocks including Lithium and Gold to the State Governments during the 62nd CGPB meeting. Of these, 5 blocks are gold deposits. Besides these, potash, molybdenum are associated with the base metals. These metals have been found in different districts of 11 states. These states include Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana.
