Overview India is one of the world's largest consumers of gold, with the country consuming over 850 t in 2000. Several agencies have license to import gold and silver in response to demand. Besides being a major consumer, India has massive gold reserves estimated at over 10 000t, with the bulk of gold being held as jewellery.
Most gold is sold to Indian nationals.
Hutti Gold Mine Company is India's only producer of gold, producing approximately 3 t of gold a year from reserves estimated at 600t. The only other gold producer in India, Bahrat Gold Mines has ceased operations due to exhaustion of high grade reserves, depth of operations and high overheads. Bharat was active in the Karnatake and Andhra Pradesh regions. Traditional gold producing areas are located at the Kolar Gold Field and Hutti Gold Field, both in Karnataka, and the Ramgiri Gold Field situated in Andhra Pradesh.