Bedded mineral deposits
Topic: Mineral Resources of India: Distribution and Conservation · NCERT: Class 10, Ch 5 "Minerals and Energy Resources"
Meaning
Bedded mineral deposits are minerals laid down and concentrated in flat layers (strata) of sedimentary rock. Coal and some iron ores form this way under long heat and pressure. Another type is the evaporite: in dry regions, water evaporates and leaves behind minerals such as gypsum, potash salt and sodium salt. Because they lie in wide layers, these deposits are often worked by open-pit or underground mining.
Example
The coal of the Damodar valley in Jharkhand and West Bengal lies in sedimentary beds. Gypsum in Rajasthan and salt in Gujarat are evaporites formed in dry conditions.
Don't confuse with
- Veins and lodes: these form in cracks of igneous and metamorphic rocks, not in flat sedimentary layers.