Diamond hunters descend on Kurnool as monsoon hits AP

TIRUPATI: There is an unusual rush of people to several remote villages in Kurnool district where the annual diamonds hunt has begun with the onset of monsoon.

Visitors are throwing the cautions into air as they focus on grabbing diamonds from the fields which could turn around their fortunes.

Every year, when the area gets first monsoon rains, people from across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and some from Maharashtra land up in various villages such as Jonnagiri, Tuggali, Maddikera, Pagidrayi, Mahanandi in search of diamonds which pop out of the barren land after the rain washes away the top layers of the soil.

"As people suddenly arrive in our villages and get down to diamond hunt, local farmers often found them as a hindrance to agricultural activities. The farmers have now put up boards warning strangers not to enter their farmlands", says Ranganna, a farmer of Jonnagiri village. However, the diamond hunters do not pay heed to such warnings as finding of precious stones could fetch them lakhs of rupees.

According to local estimates, every year, people have been successful in diamond hunts. There have been instances in the past when people have found diamonds worth 20 lakh to 2 crore.

This year too, after a brief spell of rain, an unidentified woman and a man reportedly unearthed three tiny diamonds which fetched them around 20-25 lakh each. Locals estimate that diamond hunters get lucky by unearthing diamonds worth 3-4 crore in Maddikera, Tuggali, Jonnagiri, Mahanandi and other places every year.


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