Chhattisgarh is a state in central India, formed when the sixteen Chhattisgarhi- speaking southeastern districts of Madhya Pradesh gained statehood on 1 November 2000.
It is situated in the central eastern part of the country. The north and south parts of the Chhattisgarh are hilly, while the central part is a fertile plain. Forests cover roughly .forty-four percent of the state.
Chhattisgarh is rich in mineral resources. Twenty percent of India's steel and cement is produced in there. Iron-ore, limestone, dolomite, coal, bauxite are found in abundance. It is the only tin-ore producing state in the country. Other minerals such as .corundum, garnet, quartz, marble, diamond are also found in Chhattisgarh.
It is situated in the central eastern part of the country. The north and south parts of the Chhattisgarh are hilly, while the central part is a fertile plain. Forests cover roughly .forty-four percent of the state.
Chhattisgarh is rich in mineral resources. Twenty percent of India's steel and cement is produced in there. Iron-ore, limestone, dolomite, coal, bauxite are found in abundance. It is the only tin-ore producing state in the country. Other minerals such as .corundum, garnet, quartz, marble, diamond are also found in Chhattisgarh.
Raigrah district, at the northern part of the state, has transformed into a growing industrial hub for the steel market. Just eight km from Raigarh city is the world's.,largest sponge iron and steel plantThis "industrial hub" has forced villagers in the district to change their way of lives rapidly in an effort to fit into a new growing economy. Entire villages had to be relocated, crops were lost because of the air pollution, and health issues such as .cancer and tuberculosis must be confronted and addressed.
The case in Chhattisgarh provides a poignant example of how globalization and industrialization in India of the 21 century are demanding an inhumane price from the people who live there.
"Only when the last tree has died, the last river been poisoned, the last fish been caught, will we realize we can't eat money?"
March-April 2010