UPSC Prelims 2016 · Question 99 of 98
UPSC Prelims 2016 question on Shale Gas Basins India
- ExamUPSC CSE
- Year2016
- PaperGeneral Studies Paper I
- SubjectGeography
- TopicHuman and Economic Geography
- DifficultyHard
- TypeDirect
In which of the following regions of India are shale gas resources found? 1. Cambay Basin 2. Cauvery Basin 3. Krishna-Godavari Basin
Show answer
Answer: D. 1, 2 and 3
Verdict
The answer is 1, 2 and 3. Shale gas resources are found in the Cambay, Cauvery and Krishna-Godavari basins.
Analysis
Shale gas is natural gas trapped within shale formations, and exploration in India was concentrated in these sedimentary basins. ONGC sought permission to drill eleven exploratory wells in the Cambay basin in the Mehsana, Ahmedabad and Bharuch districts of Gujarat, one well in the Cauvery basin at Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu, and five wells in the Krishna-Godavari basin in the East and West Godavari districts. Other prospective areas include the Ganga and Assam-Arakan basins and the Gondwana basins including the Damodar valley.
Source
Press Information Bureau material and press reporting on shale gas exploration.
How to crack it
Shale gas requires thick organic rich sedimentary shale, which means the prospective areas are precisely the basins that already produce conventional hydrocarbons. Cambay, Cauvery and Krishna-Godavari are all established petroliferous basins, so all three are strong candidates before any recall of the drilling programme. Learn India's sedimentary basins once and both the conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon questions become answerable from the same map.