CHHATTISGARH

Chhattisgarh , a state in central India, formed when the sixteen Chhattisgarhi-speaking southeastern districts of Madhya Pradesh gained statehood on November 1, 2000. Raipur serves as its capital. It is the 10th largest state of India by area. Chhattisgarh takes its name from 36 (Chattis is thirty-six in Hindi and Garh is Fort) princely states in this region from very old times.It borders Madhya Pradesh on the northwest, Maharashtra on the west, Andhra Pradesh on the south, Orissa on the east, Jharkhand on the northeast and Uttar Pradesh on the north.

The north and south parts of the state are hilly, while the central part is a fertile plain. Forests cover roughly forty-four percent of the state.

The northern part of the state lies on the edge of the great Indo-Gangetic plain: The Rihand River, a tributary of the Ganges, drains this area. The eastern end of the Satpura Range and the western edge of the Chota Nagpur Plateau form an east-west belt of hills that divide the Mahanadi River basin from the Indo-Gangetic plain.

The central part of the state lies in the fertile upper basin of the Mahanadi and its tributaries, with extensive rice cultivation. The upper Mahanadi basin is separated from the upper Narmada basin to the west by the Maikal range, part of the Satpuras, and from the plains of Orissa to the east by ranges of hills.

The southern part of the state lies on the Deccan plateau, in the watershed of the Godavari River and its tributary the Indravati River.

The Mahanadi is the chief river of the state. Other main rivers are Hasdo (a tributary of Mahanadi), Rihand, Indravati, Jonk and Arpa.

MINERAL RESOURCES

Chhattisgarh is the sole producer of tin concentrates and is one of the leading producers of coal, dolomite and iron ore. State accounts for about 38% tin ore, 28% diamond, 19% iron ore (hematite), 16% coal and 11% dolomite resources of the country. Important mineral occurring in the state are bauxite in Bastar, Bilaspur, Dantewada, Jashpur, Kanker, Kawardha, Korba, Raigarh and Surguja districts; china clay in Durg and Rajnandgaon districts; coal in Koriya, Korba, Raigarh and Surguja districts; dolomite in Bastar, Bilaspur, Durg, Raigarh and Raipur districts: Major iron ore (hematite) deposits in the State are: Bailadila deposit in Dantewada district; Chhote Dongar deposit in Kanker district, Rowghat, Chargaon, Metabodeli and Hahaladdi deposits in Rajnandgaon district, Boria Tibbu deposits in Dalli-Rajhara area, Durg district. Bailadila-Rowghat hill ranges in the state are considered to be one of the biggest iron ore fields in India. Limestone occurs in Bastar, Bilaspur, Durg, Champa-Janjgir, Kawardha (Kabirdham), Raigarh, Raipur and Rajnandgaon districts; quartzite in Durg, Raipur, Rajnandgaon and Raigarh districts; and talc/steatite in Durg district.

Other minerals occurring in the state are corundum in Dantewada district; diamond and other gemstones in Raipur, Mahasamund and Dhamatari districts; gold in Raipur, Jasphur, Kanker and Mahasamund districts; fire clay in Bilaspur, Raigarh and Rajnadgaon districts; fluorite in Rajnandgaon district; garnet and marble in Bastar district; granite in Bastar, Kanker and Raipur districts; emerald and gold in Raipur district, quartz/silica sand in Durg, Raigarh, Raipur and Rajnandgaon districts and tin in Bastar and Dantewada districts.