Answer the following questions in about 120 words.

Describe the distribution of coal in India.

Coal is an important fossil fuel of India as it is generously available and is used for meeting a major share of our country’s energy demands. It is for this reason that India is excessively dependent on coal to fulfil its commercial energy demand. Coal is found in India in two geological rock series which is Gondwana and Tertiary. Coal in Gondwana rock series is about 200 million years old, while the tertiary deposits are approximately 55 million years old. The major ores of Gondwana coal are found in the Damodar valley (West Bengal, Jharkhand). Jharia, Raniganj and Bokaro are important coalfields for Gondwana coal. The Godavari, Mahandi, Sone and Wardha valleys also contain coal deposits of Gondwana rock series. Tertiary coal deposits occur mainly in the north-eastern states of Meghalaya, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.


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