Panna Diamond Area
Panna Diamond Area is located in North M.P., at the contact of Bundelkhand and Vindhyan region. Panna is surrounded by Chhatarpur in the West, Damoh in South-West, Satna in the East, Katni in the South and Banda district of U.P. in the North. It is about 200 km. by road from Jhansi, which is a prominent Railway terminal of Central Railway.

Majhgawan is about 20 km away from Panna and approachable by an all–metal road from Panna & Khajuraho by 14.3 Kms. long road diverting at 5 Kms. stone on Panna - Chatarpur road. The nearest airport is Khajuraho which is about 60 km. from Majhgawan, while the nearest rail-head is Satna which is about 92 km. away.

Panna has been famous for diamonds since long and the diamond belt covers about 1000 sq.kms. area in the Panna district. Small-scale diamond mining activity was extensive in gravels and exposed conglomerates in the later part of the 16th century.

About the Diamond
The word diamond comes from the Greek term adamas, which means “unconquerable”. Diamond occupies a unique place among the precious stones by virtue of its lustre, high refractive index, hardness, resistance to mechanical and chemical changes and its rarity in nature. Diamond’s superior properties and hardness has earned this mineral the highest respect in both industry and jewellery. Today, 75-80% of the world’s natural diamonds are used for industrial purposes and 20-25% for gemstones. Diamond’s thermal conductivity is four times greater than copper. Diamonds were not used as gems in European jewellery until the late 13th century, while a French law of the time decreed that only the king could wear them. In the symbolism of gemstones, diamond represents steadfast love and is the birthstone for April.

Diamond Sources
As a primary mineral, diamond occurs only in olivine-rich peridotites, notably kimberlite, where it is associated with olivines, magnetite, and phlogopite. Substantial amounts of diamond are also mined from both recent and ancient (consolidated conglomerates) placer deposits as diamonds. Other mantle minerals are dispersed into rivers as they tend to accumulate, because they are heavy, in between pebbles and boulders forming the gravel bed of a river. These deposits are called alluvial gravels, (secondary sources). Micro-Diamonds may even be found in meteorites.

History of Diamond
Appreciation of its beauty has been known since its discovery in India, prior to 400 B.C. India has had a long history of diamond mining, produced diamonds of historical fame and was the sole producer of diamonds until 1725. In the alluvial gravel deposit of Golkonda, many diamonds of historical fame were produced.

After the discovery of diamond deposits in Brazil in 1725, South Africa came into prominence for its diamond deposits in 1870s. After the discovery of Kimberley diamond bearing pipe, it was known how diamond are formed. The deposits of Australia, Russia and most recently of Canada were discovered with modern methods of exploration. Today diamonds are mined in some 25 countries on every continent but Europe and Antarctica. The top seven producing countries, that account for 80% of the world’s rough diamond supply, are Australia, Botswana, Zaire, South Africa, Russia, Angola, and Namibia.

About 70% of the world Diamond production is cut and polished in India. About 185 million carats diamonds valuing about Rs. 33,000 crore were imported and about Rs. 40,000 crore worth of diamonds were exported after cutting and polishing in 2003-04. But in diamond mining, India is nowhere. Majhgawan is the only organised and mechanised diamond mine in Asia. A number of Kim-berlite pipes were found in Andhra Pradesh, but found to be non-economical. The Government of India is trying to explore the new deposits by involving global companies like Rio-Tinto, BHP and NMDC, which are involved in extensive exploration for diamond deposits in India.