Panna: Hunt for treasure in India’s diamond town in Madhya Pradesh

India has always played a key role in the diamond industry. For more than 3,000 years, it was the world’s sole diamond source.

This changed in the 18th Century with discoveries in Brazil and South Africa.

But Panna’s legacy as a hub for diamonds has endured.

The district’s Majhgawan mine, operated by the state-controlled National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), is the country’s only organised source of diamond production.

NMDC began mining in 1968 and by 2024, it had extracted over 1.3 million carats of diamonds.

Though anyone can mine diamonds in Panna – that too at a cheap price – most hunters avoid taking the official route to sell their treasure.

Several residents told BBC Hindi that there was a big market for illegally mined diamonds – but the exact figures of the trade are unknown.

A black-market dealer, who did not want to be named, said people sell their finds illegally to avoid taxes and to ensure quick payments.

“If they go through official channels, they only get paid after the diamond is sold at auction, which can sometimes take years,” he said.

Ravi Patel, Panna’s mining officer, says authorities have taken measures to curb illegal sales but it’s difficult to track them because most of the diamonds mined are relatively small and do not fetch high prices.

Officials admit that there has been a decline in the number of diamonds deposited for government auctions.

In 2016, the office received 1,133 diamonds, but the numbers shrank to just 23 in 2023.

Anupam Singh, a government diamond evaluator in Panna, says restrictions on mining are behind this decline.

“The forest department has marked off significant zones, turning them into no-go areas for diamond hunters,” Mr Singh said.