Russia to supply $2.1 bn worth of rough diamonds to India

New Delhi, Dec 11: In a bid to create alternative import sources of rough diamonds for the Indian cutting and polishing industry, Russia's state-led Alrosa mining group has entered into direct selling agreements with 12 diamantaires for supplies worth $2.1 billion over three years. Some of the top Indian exporters of cut and polished diamonds will benefit from the deal that is expected to create an alternative source of roughs for India, which is the world's largest hub for this industry, accounting for nearly 80 percent of volume, officials said. Russia is the top producer of roughs and Alrosa controls around 27 percent of global trade. The agreements were signed coinciding with Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit here for the 15th India-Russia Annual Summit, during which he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi also attended the World Diamond Conference here. Earlier on Thursday Russian President Vladimir Putin said there is a need to boost trade between India and Russia. Speaking to media here after his summit talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Putin said Russia was keen to deepen the political dialogue between the two countries to strengthen cooperation in various areas. He said the two countries have a special privileged partnership. "It continues to develop dynamically," Putin said. Referring to the annual bilateral trade, he said it was not enough. "We talked of measures to diversify bilateral trade," Putin said.