Amid rising demand for gold across the world, India has found 50 tonnes of gold reserves – especially in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh can become the country’s largest gold supplying state in a few years. Officials say that this discovery will not only increase gold production in the country, but will also reduce the country’s dependence on gold imports. An official said that around 50 tonnes of gold reserves have been found in Jonagiri village of Kurnool district alone.
**Places identified for gold mining**
Principal Secretary of Mines Department, Mukesh Kumar Meena told a press conference that apart from Jonagiri, four more potential sites for gold mining have been identified. These include Ramagiri, Javakula, Chigurukunta and Bisnatham. He estimated that Jonagiri alone has 50 tonnes of gold, which has the potential to make Andhra Pradesh a major gold supplying state in the country in the coming years. The government is planning further exploration and development in these mineral-rich areas.
**50 ton gold reserves in Jonagiri**
Talking about starting commercial gold production in Jonagiri, he said that about a decade ago, 1,500 acres of land was allotted for gold mining in this village in Kurnool. However, earlier exploration activities were limited to only 500 acres, yielding an estimated 13 tons of gold. Exploration work on the remaining 1,000 acres of land is going to start soon. The total gold reserves in Jonagiri alone are estimated to be 50 tonnes.
**What is the price of 50 tons of gold?**
Based on local market rates, the estimated value of the 50 tonnes of gold found in Jonagiri is between ₹7,500 crore and ₹9,000 crore. This figure is subject to change due to daily price fluctuations. With the discovery of such a large reserve of gold, gold production in the country is expected to increase.
Only 1 gram of gold is extracted from one ton of material
Mukesh Kumar Meena stressed that gold mining not only requires huge capital but also requires special expertise. He justified the government’s decision to hand over gold mining work to private companies through a tender process. He said that in recent years the work of extracting gold through mining has reduced significantly; Currently, processing one ton of mining material yields only one gram of gold.
Gold mining will start soon in Jonagiri
He said that earlier, processing one tonne of mining material would yield three grams of gold, while production of less than 0.8 grams was not economically profitable. He also informed that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu will officially inaugurate the gold mining work in Jonagiri later this month.
gold production in india
India consumes about 800 tonnes of gold each year, yet domestic production has declined since the closure of the Kolar Gold Fields in Karnataka in 2000. Currently, the state-run Hutti Gold Mines in Karnataka is the only large active gold producer in India, producing about 1.5 tonnes of gold every year. However, due to high demand, the country is dependent on gold imports from other countries.
