
No 3k-tonne gold deposit found in UP’s Sonbhadra: Geological Survey of India
The Geological Survey of India (GSI) said on Saturday there was no discovery of a gold deposit estimated to be about 3,350 tonne in Uttar Pradesh’s Sonbhadra, a remark that came after reports quoted local mining officials as saying that there was a vast deposit of the resource in the district.
Reacting to the reports, GSI, which is headquartered in Kolkata, said it had carried out gold exploration in the region but the results were not encouraging. “We had carried out an exploration in around 0.5 sq km area, digging as a far as 50m below the ground. Our conservative estimate was that around 160kg of gold, not 3,350 tonnes, could be extracted from more than 52,800 tonnes of ore. This means you can get only around 3.03 grams per tonne of the ore,” said M Sridhar, director general of GSI.
Sonbhadra district mining officer KK Rai had claimed on Friday that gold deposits estimated to be about 3,000 tonne were found in Son Pahadi and Hardi areas of the district.
According to GSI, however, the availability of gold was “very lean” and the agency didn’t find it economically viable to go for further extraction. Its report was later handed over to the state directorate of geology and mining of Uttar Pradesh.
“During our exploration, we dug wells with a spacing of 120m and 50m deep. In our report, we had suggested that if we go deeper and the wells are dug closer (less than 120m) then there is a possibility to find a little more gold than what we had estimated. But certainly not 3,350 tonnes,” said Sridhar.
In its statement, GSI said: “As per the news report, published in various media that the availability of 3350 tonnes of gold in Son Pahadi and Nardi field, Sonbhadra district, it is stated in the news that State Directorate of Geology and Mining, (DGM) Uttar Pradesh has shared this information. Geological Survey of India is not a party to the information published in the news. GSI has not estimated such kind of vast resource of gold deposit in Sonbhadra district, UP.”

Vaccination lagging, govt appeals against hesitancy

No kidnapping, no conversion, went on my own to Karnataka, says Gorakhpur woman
- The woman's father had earlier lodged a First Information Report (FIR) against the youth from Karnataka for allegedly kidnapping his daughter and forcing her to change religion.

HC vacates stay as Jharkhand Speaker ends Babulal Marandi’s anti-defection trial
- The Speaker had initiated proceedings under anti-defection laws to decide if the merger of Jharkhand Vikas Morcha-Prajatantrik (JVM-P) led by Babulal Marandi into the BJP in February, 2020, was valid.

9 states, UTs among better performing areas during Covid-19 vaccination drive

AAP leader Raghav Chadha underlines need for monitoring water leakages

Sasikala to be released from jail on Jan 27, Palaniswami rules out her return
- “There is no chance of her joining. She is not in the AIADMK party,” Palaniswami told reporters.

Congress falls back on Oommen Chandy to retrieve party prospects in Kerala
- The party leadership had reportedly told three senior leaders (Chandy, Chennithala and Ramachandran) who were summoned to Delhi two days ago that winning the election was top priority and to give more importance to the party than factions.

Indo-Pacific region guided by norms an article of faith for India: Foreign Secy
- Against the backdrop of China’s assertive actions amid the Covid-19 pandemic, India has stepped up cooperation with its partners to oppose unilateral actions and protect the freedom of navigation and overflight across the Indo-Pacific.

Assam Congress to join hands with AIUDF, AGM, 3 Left parties for assembly polls
- Newly-formed Anchalik Gana Morcha (AGM) of journalist-turned-politician and Rajya Sabha MP Ajit Kumar Bhuyan and three Left parties, CPI, CPI-M and CPI-ML, will also be part of this pre-poll tie up.

India strongly condemns attacks on UN peacekeepers in Central African Republic

India 'deeply honoured' to meet the world's healthcare needs: PM Modi
- Bhutan, the Maldives and Bangladesh will be among the first countries in the neighbourhood to receive Covid-19 vaccines from India as grant assistance.

News updates from Hindustan Times: Sajad Lone withdraws from Gupkar Alliance

Tharoor's word of the day is tongue-in-cheek response to ex-Australia cricketers

Man rapes friend’s minor daughter, tries to bury her alive in Madhya Pradesh
- The accused assaulted the girl late Monday night when she had gone to the family’s agricultural field to switch off a water pump.

Sajad Lone quits Gupkar Alliance 3 months after its formation
- Sajjad Lone's Peoples' Conference decided to exit the Gupkar Alliance over the fielding of proxy candidates by constituent parties against the officially mandated candidates of the alliance during DDC elections