Tirupati: After a gap of nearly two decades, gold mining is set to restart in Ramagiri and Bhadrampalle gold fields. The mines and geology department has identified nearly 16 tonnes of gold reserves in Anantapur district, where private agencies would be roped in to mine the gold deposits at 10 locations.
India’s first private gold mine was allocated to Geomysore at Jonnagiri in Kurnool district last year, where land acquisition is nearing completion and processing units are being set up. The mines and geology department, which conducted a survey in Anantapur district recently, has identified 16 tonnes of gold reserves in an extent of 97.4 square kilometres, and spread across 10 different locations in the district.
Out of this, 10 tonnes are set to be mined in the blocks situated in Kadiri mandal region. Ramagiri gold fields are said to have about four tonnes of gold reserves, while the Boksampalli region has about two tonnes of yellow metal reserves. The department estimates a deposit of four grams of gold per tonne of ore in these regions.
Mining at Ramagiri gold fields was first carried out from 1905 to 1927 by M/s John Taylor & Sons Ltd. Bharat Gold Mines Limited, a PSU, was engaged in mining at the fields until 2001. After a span of two decades, the state government is set to tap the gold reserves in Anantapur district by awarding composite licences to private agencies to carry out exploration and mining activities simultaneously.
As per Indian Bureau of Mines data, there are about 3,834 mining leases granted by state governments for 42 different minerals, covering 3,25,876.20 hectares in the country.
