Panna: A tribal labourer has discovered a diamond estimated to be worth nearly Rs 40 lakh at a mine in Madhya Pradesh’s Panna district.
According to officials, the labourer, Madhav Adivasi, was working at a shallow mine in Krishna Kalyanpur Patti when he dug out the 11.95-carat precious stone. Ravi Patel, an official from the Panna diamond office, said that the diamond has excellent clarity and is valued at over Rs 40 lakh.
Madhav has deposited the diamond to the district diamond office as per rules. The stone will be auctioned soon, and after a deduction of 12.5%, Madhav will receive the remaining amount.
Panna, located in the Bundelkhand region, is renowned for its rich diamond reserves, which are estimated to be around 1.2 million carats. In India, diamond resources are primarily found in the three states of Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
Madhya Pradesh alone holds the country’s 90.17% diamond reserves. According to the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), Madhya Pradesh has 28.7 million carats, while Andhra Pradesh has 1.8 million carats and Chhattisgarh has 1.3 million carats.
At the Panna Diamond Office, miners go through a transparent process after depositing stones. An 11.5% royalty and 1% TDS are deducted, and the remaining auction proceeds go to the depositor. To encourage miners to use official channels, the office offers an advance payment of Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh for each deposited diamond. However, this incentive hasn’t entirely curbed illegal trading. Reports suggest brokers and traders visit mining sites to buy diamonds directly from miners.
National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) in Madhya Pradesh has a mining capacity of 84,000 carats per year. To date, they have recovered around 1 million carats from the region. The NDMC Panna mine is the only mechanized diamond mine in the country, covering more than 74 hectares.
