Natural Resources : West Bengal

The state of West Bengal is very rich in natural resources. The forests, rivers, mines, hills are all essential physical entities for human activities. Basically dense forests found in the foothills of the Himalayas are sources of medicinal plants and other products useful for rural livelihood.

The Ganges is the only perennial river in West Bengal that divides in to two – one branch enters Bangladesh in the name of Padma and the other branch flows in the state in the name of river Bhagirathi and river Hooghly. The northern hilly region has rivers like Teesta, Torsa, Jaldhaka, Mahananda, while the western plateau region has rivers like Damodar, Ajay, and Kansai etc. The Ganges delta including the Sundarbans area is full of rivers; creeks cover the region like a web.

Of the important mineral resources, the state has a large deposit of coal and iron ore. The coal mining at Raniganj coalfield was the first mining operation in the country. This coalfield also has a large source of iron ore. Other important minerals of the state include dolomite, limestone, Rock Phosphate, granite and china clay.