Bunder Diamond Mining Project

closed

Economic/Social Impact of the Project The Project has received Letter of Intent[LOI] for Diamond Mining in Jan, 2012. Subsequently it obtained approvals for mine plan from Indian Bureau of Mines [IBM] in Aug, 13 and Conditional Environmental Clearance from MoEF in Aug, 2015. The Ground Water clearance has been obtained from CGWA in April 2015. States recommend the forest diversion proposal to MoEFCC in Aug 2015 and wild life management plan was approved by Chief Wild Life Warden, Govt of MP in Feb 2016. The Bunder project is located in the Chhatarpur district in the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh, a central state of India located 500km south east of New Delhi. It is Rio Tinto first and most advanced diamond mining venture in India. It is operated by Rio Tinto Exploration India Private Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Rio Tinto Group. Up on receiving the Reconnaissance Permit in 2002, exploration started in the area in January 2003, with the diamond-bearing ore discovered in the Bundelkhand region in May 2004. The deposit - the first diamond discovery in the world in more than 50 years - consists of a cluster of seven diamondiferous lamproites [volcanic rock], the largest of which measures 18 hectares. Exploration activities including extensive sampling and drilling has been conducted till the expiry of Prospecting License in Sep, 2011. Once operational the Bunder diamond mine would rank India and Madhya Pradesh amongst the top 10 diamond producing regions in the world in terms of volume and value.