Rio Tinto's precious find in India, a diamond mine to replace its largest one in Australia, is a breakthrough for both the mining giant and the country
It was around the Ninth Century when European traders back from their visit to India first started talking about the sparkling white stone. As imagination soared, so did the marvel around diamonds and the desire to own them among queens and princesses in Europe and the world over. That gave birth to the world’s first diamond industry in India.
It is not that the mining companies themselves are not looking for more. In India itself, De Beers, the world’s largest diamond producer, and Rio Tinto have been exploring for years. De Beers is also said to be actively exploring Madhya Pradesh and parts of Andhra Pradesh for new finds. But exploration and mining of diamonds is considered the most painstaking and time consuming compared to other minerals.
(This story appears in the 09 October, 2009 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)