Production of iron ore was 289 million metric tonne in fy 2024-25: centre - the statesman

The Ministry of Mines on Wednesday informed that the index of mineral production for the mining and quarrying sector for March this year stood at 156.8, increasing by 0.4 per cent over March

2024. Minerals like iron ore, manganese ore and zinc concentrate saw notable increase in production during March 2025 compared to March 2024. Advertisement Production of iron ore rose by

5.7 per cent to 25.9 million metric tonne (MMT) during the said period. Manganese ore production grew by 9.7 per cent to 0.39 MMT and production of zinc concentrate rose by 5.5 per cent to

0.19 MMT in March 2025 over March 2024. Advertisement Production of some key minerals in the country has continued to witness strong growth during FY 2025-26, after reaching record

production levels in FY 2024-25. Iron ore accounts for 70 per cent of the total MCDR mineral production by value. Production of iron ore was 289 million metric tonne (MMT) in FY 2024-25. As

per provisional estimates for the first month (April) of FY 2025-26, there is a steady increase in the production of these minerals as compared to the production in the corresponding month

last year. Production of Bauxite has increased from 1.87 MMT during April 2024 to 2.13 MMT during April 2025, with 13.9 per cent growth. Production of limestone has increased from 39.58 MMT

during April 2024 to 40.5 MMT during April 2025, with 1.2 per cent growth. Production of Lead and Zinc Ore has increased from 1.24 MMT during April 2024 to 1.27 MMT during April 2025, with

2.4 per cent growth. Production of Zinc Concentrate has increased from 0.13 MMT during April 2024 to 0.14 MMT during April 2025, with 7.7 per cent growth. In the non-ferrous metal sector,

primary aluminum production in FY 2025-26 posted a growth of 1.5 per cent over the corresponding period last year, increasing to 3.47 lakh ton (LT) in FY 2025-26 (April) from 3.42 LT in FY

2024-25 (April). During the same comparative period, refined copper production has grown by 15.6 percent from 0.45 LT to 0.52 LT. India is the second largest aluminum producer, and top-10

producer in refined copper. Continued growth in aluminum and copper points toward continued strong economic activity in user sectors such as energy, infrastructure, construction, automotive

and machinery. Advertisement