Q. With reference to India, consider the following statements:

  1. Monazite is a source of rare earths.
  2. Monazite contains thorium.
  3. Monazite occurs naturally in the entire Indian coastal sands in India.
  4. In India, Government bodies only can process or export monazite.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

  • 1, 2 and 3 only
  • 1, 2 and 4 only
  • 3 and 4 only
  • 1, 2, 3 and 4

Answer: (b) 1, 2 and 4 only

Monazite
  • It is one of the beach sand minerals that contain rare earth-like, lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium etc.
  • Monazite is a reddish-brown phosphate mineral containing rare earth metals.
  • It also contains thorium which is a “prescribed substance”, the list of which was revised in 2006 under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962.
  • Monazite does not occur naturally in the entire Indian coastal sands in India.
  • Monazite is an atomic mineral that occurs naturally in the coastal sands of three districts: Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, and Kanyakumari.
  • Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL), a wholly-owned Public Sector Undertaking of the Government of India (GOI) under DAE, is the only entity that has been permitted to produce and process monazite and handle it for domestic use as well as for export.
  • It is a radioactive atomic mineral used for the production of Thorium (as high as 500 ppm) and has the potential to be used as fuel in the nuclear power system.
Monazite