Deccan Gold Mines: History Of India’s First Post-Independence Gold Mine In Jonnagiri, Andhra Pradesh
The Jonnagiri greenstone belt, part of the Eastern Dharwar Craton, first drew the attention of the Geological Survey of India for detailed investigations between 1991 and 1994.
The shares of Deccan Gold Mines Ltd. have surged over 30% in just a month. The development followed after the company announced it plans to operate India’s first gold mine since independence, the Andhra Pradesh-based Jonnagiri Gold Mines.
On Thursday, the company's MD, Hanuma Prasad Modali, told NDTV Profit that the Jonnagiri gold mine is expected to yield up to 750 kg of gold at peak production. The company has also secured approval from the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board to begin operations.
According to the Deccan Gold Mines Ltd. website, the Jonnagiri project is well developed and construction-ready. “Open-pit mining operation and simple Metallurgy of the gold ore make this project highly profitable,” the company said.
A detailed exploration of the area has confirmed the presence of about 3,61,000 ounces of gold resources, primarily located within the East and West blocks. Deccan Mines said that about 2,71,000 ounces are accessible via open-pit mining.
History Of Jonnagiri Gold Mines
The Jonnagiri greenstone belt, part of the Eastern Dharwar Craton, first drew the attention of the Geological Survey of India for detailed investigations between 1991 and 1994. This followed a discovery of the site that indicated the remnants of gold mining activities.
"Old debris and pounding marks indicate that the area has been worked by the ancients for recovering gold,” Deccan Mines said.
Following the official survey, it was found that there are five key blocks in the mine with significant potential for gold mineralization. These included Gavanikonda, Dona West, Dona East, North and South blocks, of which the Dona West and East blocks.
"The exploration by GSI involved 3297.65 m of diamond core drilling in the West block and 5183.20 m of drilling in the East block," the company noted.
Following this survey, it was found that the gold-bearing rocks (called "reserves") are present in two blocks of the Jonnagiri area— the Dona West block and the East block.
In the West Block, gold is found in a rock type called silicified metabasalt. In the East Block, the main rock is from the granodiorite-tonalite group.
Shares of Deccan Gold Mines were trading 4.73% lower at Rs 155.95 apiece on the NSE at 12:02 p.m. on Friday, compared to a 1.07% rise in the benchmark Nifty 50 at 25,015.00.
