Karnataka’s geology department has reported significant traces of gold and lithium in forested parts of Koppala and Raichuru districts, marking one of the state’s most promising mineral findings in recent years. However, the discoveries lie within protected forest zones, and mining cannot proceed without mandatory clearances. As a result, the state now faces a complex decision shaped equally by economic opportunity and environmental responsibility.

Deep inside these forested belts, survey teams say they have encountered unusually rich mineral deposits. In some pockets, the findings are far above anything earlier recorded in the region.

Yet the minerals remain untouched, locked beneath layers of old-growth forest, where digging cannot begin without formal approval. The tension between dev

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