Knowledge Nugget: How are ‘Golconda Blue’ and diamond mining in India relevant for the UPSC Exam?

Key Takeaways :

1. For Indians, the Golconda Blue holds deep historical significance due to its origins in the famed Golconda mines of present-day Telangana and its association with the royal houses of Indore and Baroda.

2. The diamond’s documented journey begins with Maharaja Yeshwant Rao Holkar II of Indore—an influential modernist ruler known for his refined aesthetic and cosmopolitan lifestyle during the 1920s and 1930s. In 1923, his father commissioned a bracelet featuring the blue diamond from French jeweler Chaumet, following the acquisition of the iconic Indore Pears.

3. In the 1930s, royal jeweler Mauboussin reimagined the piece, setting The Golconda Blue into a necklace famously worn by the Maharani of Indore and immortalised in a portrait by French artist Bernard Boutet de Monvel.

4. Post India’s independence in 1947, the diamond was acquired by renowned New York jeweler Harry Winston, who mounted it in a brooch alongside a matching white diamond. The piece later made its way to the Maharaja of Baroda before entering private ownership.

After knowing the history and significance of Golconda blue, let’s revisit some basics and understand what exactly a diamond is.

Diamond

1. Diamond is an allotrope of carbon. It is the hardest natural substance known and has a very high melting and boiling point.

2. In diamonds, each carbon atom is bonded to four other carbon atoms, forming a rigid three-dimensional structure.

Diamonds as precious stones are mostly used for ornamental purpose. Industrial diamonds are used for drill bits .(Representational Image)

3. Diamonds occur majorly in two types of deposits, primarily in igneous rocks of basic or ultrabasic composition and in alluvial deposits derived from the primary sources.

4. Diamonds can be synthesised by subjecting pure carbon to very high pressure and temperature. These synthetic diamonds are small but are otherwise indistinguishable from natural diamonds.

5. Notably, Russia is the world’s largest diamond producer.

Diamond mining in India

1. According to the Indian Bureau of Mines National Mineral Inventory Overview of Diamonds, “Diamond mining in India can be traced back to the 5th Century (B.C.). Mining and trading activity of diamonds took place to a large extent in the 16th and 17th centuries (A.D.) in Andhra Pradesh. Golconda was the major trading centre.”

2. Presently, India is the world’s biggest centre for cutting and polishing of rough diamonds and Surat is among the premier centres of the diamond sector, with about 90 per cent of the world’s rough diamonds being cut and polished here by around 10 lakh workers employed in more than 2,500 units.

3. According to the Indian Minerals Yearbook 2019, the diamond fields of India are grouped into four regions:
📌South Indian tract of Andhra Pradesh, comprising parts of Anantapur, Kadapa, Guntur, Krishna, Mahabubnagar and Kurnool districts;

📌Central Indian tract of Madhya Pradesh, comprising Panna belt;

📌Eastern Indian tract mostly of Odisha, lying between Mahanadi and Godavari valleys;

📌 Behradin-Kodawali area in Raipur district and Tokapal, Dugapal, etc., areas in Bastar district of Chhattisgarh.

BEYOND THE NUGGET: World’s Second Largest Diamond & Kimberley Process

(After learning about the diamonds and their mining in India, let’s learn about the recent discovery and global initiative related to diamonds.)

1. The second-largest diamond in the world was uncovered in a mine in Botswana in August 2024. It is a rough 2,492-carat stone.

2. In a statement by Canadian company Lucara, using the X-Ray Transmission technology, the company was able to discover the diamond in the Karowe Diamond Mine in northeastern Botswana. Notably, Botswana is one of the largest producers of diamonds, and its 30 per cent gross domestic product and 80 per cent of exports depend on the gem.

Using the X-Ray Transmission technology, the company was able to discover the diamond in the Karowe Diamond Mine in northeastern Botswana. (Photo: Lucara Diamond Corp)

3. The newly discovered gem remains far behind the world’s largest diamond, the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond, which was discovered in South Africa about 120 years ago.

Kimberley Process

1. The Kimberley Process (KP) is a global initiative to prevent the flow of conflict diamonds and promote ethical diamonds by protecting legitimate trade in rough diamonds. The KP works in partnership with the United Nations to prevent conflict diamonds from entering the legal market.

2. According to the website of the Kimberley Process, “The Kimberley Process is an international certification scheme that regulates trade in rough diamonds. The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) outlines the rules that govern the trade in rough diamonds. The KPCS has developed a set of minimum requirements that each participant must meet.”

3. Notably, KP has no permanent offices or permanent staff. Neither can the KP be considered as an international agreement from a legal perspective, as it is implemented through the national legislations of its participants, as per the official website of the Kimberley Process.

4. States and regional economic integration organisations that are eligible to trade in rough diamonds are participants of the KP. Presently, there are 60 participants representing 86 countries, with the European Union counted as a single participant. The participants include all major rough diamond producing, exporting and importing countries.

5. Besides participants, KP also has observers. There are currently four main observers: the World Diamond Council (WDC), representing industry; the Civil Society Coalition (CSC); the Diamond Development Initiative (DDI); and the African Diamond Producers Association (ADPA).

Post Read Question

Which one of the following foreign travellers elaborately discussed about diamonds and diamond mines of India? (UPSC CSE 2018)

(a) Francois Bernier

(b) Jean-Baptiste Tavernier

(c) Jean de Thevenot

(d) Abbe Barthelemy Carre

(Sources: ibm.gov.in,  The Golconda Blue: Rare 23-carat diamond may fetch Rs 430 crore at auction, kimberleyprocess.com, World’s second largest diamond, What are lab-grown diamonds, Indian Minerals Yearbook 2019, From mines of Golconda to Tower of London: The story of Kohinoor)

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