Q. With reference to diamonds, consider the following statements:
1.Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are the major diamond Reserves in India
2.South Africa and Congo has the world’s largest diamond reserves.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Statement 1 is correct: Diamond occurrences are reported since prehistoric times in the country. Presently, diamond fields of India are grouped into four regions:
1) South Indian tract of Andhra Pradesh, comprising parts of Anantapur, Kadapa, Guntur, Krishna, Mahabubnagar and Kurnool districts;
2) Central Indian tract of Madhya Pradesh, comprising Panna belt;
3) Behradin-Kodawali area in Raipur district and Tokapal, Dugapal, etc. areas in Bastar district of Chhattisgarh; and
4) Eastern Indian tract mostly of Odisha, lying between Mahanadi and Godavari valleys.
Statement 2 is incorrect: The world reserves of industrial diamond are about 1,200 million carats located mainly in Russia (54%), Congo (Kinshasa) (12.5%), Australia (10%) Botswana (7.5%) and South Africa (6%).
Source: PIB
