A farmer from a rural part of India's Madhya Pradesh has become an instant millionaire after scooping up a 14.98-carat diamond which has fetched Rs60.60 lakh ($82,400) at an auction, The Telegraph, citing officials, reported on Wednesday.
"I'm very happy. This is God's gift. I'll use the money from the proceeds for my children's education," an elated Lakhan Yadav told reporters.
He found the gem last month in a mine in Panna District's Krishna Kalyanpur area roughly 20 kilometers from his village. "It's sheer luck. You get it once in life," he said.
Panna is very popular for its diamond mines. For the 45-year old farmer, this was his first major extraction. He first thought he simply dug up a different pebble, but quickly realized it wasn't when he rubbed the thing clean.
Yadav said he is not an "educated" person and that he will put the money in a fixed deposit to make sure his four children get good education, the Times of India reported.
Following the life-changing discovery, Yadav decides to continue extracting from the piece of land and may have its lease renewed. "I hope to get another diamond and work on it a few more months," he said.
According to the Times, Yadav is among a recent pattern of big finds in the region, leading other prospective miners to believe it has an abundance of diamond-studded dirt.
Yadav owns two hectares of land he acquired with the compensation money, two water buffaloes, and now a motorcycle that he bought with the first payment after depositing the diamond with the district administration.
Aside from Yadav, three other men also dug up their own gems in the last 10 days. These diamonds and a few others -- worth more than Rs 1.5 crore ($204,000) -- were auctioned in Panna during a three-day event that ended Saturday.
