Edited To Add: The Geological Survey of India after reading reports of gold being found stated that it had carried out exploration work for gold in Sonbhadra district of UP before but the results were not encouraging. It also said that it was,”not party to the news reports which have appeared in the media.”
The mineralized zone having an average grade of 3.03 gms of gold per tonne is tentative in nature and the total gold that can be extracted from the resource of 52,806.25 tonnes of ore is approximately 160 kgs not 3,350 tonnes as reported by the media.
-GSI Director General M Sridhar said in Kolkata
The Geological Survey of India (GSI) discovered gold deposits estimated to be around 3,000 tonnes and worth Rs 12 lakh crore in Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh. This is almost five times India’s current reserve of gold.
These gold deposits were found in Son Pahadi and Hardi areas the district mining officer K K Rai told ET on Friday. The deposits in Son Pahadi are estimated to be around 2,943.26 tonnes, while the Hardi block is around 646.16 kilogram.
According to the World Gold Council, India currently has 626 tonnes of gold reserves. The new reserves found are almost five times that amount and are estimated to be worth nearly Rs 12 lakh crore.