Intl event on diamonds in Hyderabad

Andhra Pradesh's Golconda fort will play host to an international event on diamonds. Diamond Trading Company (DTC), a De Beers Group company, will be organising this event at the historical monument in March 2007 for the first time in India.

Called 'Celebrating Diamonds-Myths and Magic', the event is being organised to promote the consumption of diamonds internationally.

Auctioning of diamonds will also take place at the event. Last time, a similar event was organised in Venice.

Golconda fort, which is about 11 km from Hyderabad, was once famous for diamond trade. Besides, the world-famous 'Kohinoor' diamond is said to have its origins here.

"Because of the history that the Golconda fort shares with diamonds, we have decided to organise an international event on diamonds here," Cherie Tandon Saldanha, managing director-India, DTC, told mediapersons in Hyderabad.

According to Saldanha, the jewellery market in India is around Rs 68,000 crore of which diamond jewellery comprises around Rs 8,000 crore. "This is roughly 12 per cent of the total jewellery market and we would like to see this number go up to 80 per cent in the future," she added.

De Beers has mines in Africa and Canada and is prospecting sites in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa.