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Mineral Policy of Government of Andhra Pradesh
I.
INIRODUCTION
The minerals and metals have formed an integral part of man's materialneeds. Even the various civilizations have been named after minerals and metalslike Stone age, Copper age, Bronze age, Iron age and now the Atomic age orUranium and Plutonium age. Koutilya in his Arthasastra has stated that "thewealth of the State is its source in the mining and metallurgical industry; thepower of the state comes out of these resources".Minerals are a fundamental component of nation's material and economicbase. However, most people are not aware of this role in the country's economyand the contribution made by minerals in the growth of nation's wealth. This lack of awareness in the past had led to low priority to mineral development andrelated infrastructural needs in respect of the plan allocation in our country. It isfortunate that lately the importance of minerals is gradually coming to limelight.The Government of Andhra Pradesh under VISION-2020 document has given athrust for mining and development of Mineral Based Industries.
II. GENERAL
The State of Andhra Pradesh spreads over an extent of 2. 77lakh squarekilometers in the south east of the Indian sub-continent and supports a populationof more than 70 million people. Area wise and population wise it is the fifthlargest state in the country.The state is endowed with a variety of natural wealth, the land beingconducive for the growth of several food and cash crops, the important amongwhich are the paddy, sugar cane, groundnut, cotton, tobacco and chillies. It haslarge tracts of useful forests covering 22% of the area and endowed with a varietyof flora and fauna. It has a long coast-line of 960 kms, spreading from Ichapuramtaluq in Srikakulam district in the north to Sulurpet in Nellore district in thesouth.Compared to many other states in India, Andhra Pradesh has a large number of perennial rivers which rightly earned it the popular name of a 'river state'. TheGodavari, the longest and widest river of south India flows for 770 kms and is fedby several tributaries in the state, such as Penganga, Pranhita, Indravati, Tal and
 
Sabari. The Krishna river flows through the central portion of the state for about620 kms and is fed by the tributaries Thngabhadra, Dindi and Musi. Both theGodavari and the Krishna have developed large deltas of very fertile land rich forpaddy cultivation which earned the name of 'Paddy Granary of India' to the state.The next longest river is the Penna flowing through the southern parts of the state with its tributaries Chitravati, Papagani, Cheyyeru and Sigileru. Otherrivers worth mentioning are the Nagavali and Vamsadhara in the north and theGundlakamma and Swarnamukhi in the south.The annual rainfall varying between 75 cm to 150 cm in different parts,derived through the south-west and north-east monsoons, feeds not only therivers and streams, but the innumerable natural and artificial tanks and ponds andhelps replenishment of ground water which is harnessed to a sizeable extent tosupplement surface water impounded and diverted into canals at various vantagepoints. The state has thus reservoirs covering 1,11,375 hectares, ponds and tanksof 10,125 hectares and river system of 4480 km in overall length.Administratively, the state is divided into 23 districts. Physiographic ally, thestate can be divided into five regions:1. The coastal plains,2. The Eastern ghats,3. The south central uplands,4. The interior rugged plains and5. The north-western plateau.Minerals directly or indirectly contribute to industrialization, they form animportant infrastructure for any development of the State and Country.Management of available mineral resources is vital for achieving the desiredgoals cherished by the society and Government.In order to keep pace with the rapid consumption of minerals, theconservation has become an important factor. Conservation of non-renewableresources means "Wise use and efficient management"; "full extraction and fullutilization"; no waste; "no unnecessary hoarding" achieved within the social andenvironmental framework of the community. These aspects can be summarizedshortly as:
 
(a) Dig the minimum required.(b) Make full and proper use of what is dug out.(c) Waste the least.III.
INFRASTRUCTURE
Andhra Pradesh has vital infrastructural facilities like Power, Railways,Ports, Airports, Communications and Information Technology.
POWER
Andhra Pradesh has an installed capacity of 7935 MW power plants andhas already started constructing projects under Public Sector as well as underPrivate Sector to augment power supply.
ROADS
The State has a total road network of 194523 km out of which state roadsconstitute 7952 km, major district roads constitute 34168 km. The road density inthe state is 0.70 km per one Sq.km and 293 km per one lakh population againstthe all India average of 1.00 km per one Sq.km and 389 km per lakh population.
RAILWAYS
The State has a total length of 4598 km comprising 3875 km of Broadgauge, 686 km of Metre gauge and 37 km of Narrow gauge. They are wellconnected with all the major cities, towns and district headquarters.
PORTS
Andhra Pradesh has a coastline of 974 km running from Ichapuram in thenorth to Sulurpet in south. The State has one major port at Visakapatnam, 2intermediate ports at Kakinada and Machilipatnam and 10 minor ports atBhavanapadu, Kalingapatnam, Bheemunipatnam, Gangavaram,Muthyalammapalem, Rawa, Narsapur, Nizampatnam, Vadarevu,Krishnampatnam. They have very good potential for handling both minor andmajor traffic.
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