Sleuths return diamonds found at blast site to traders

MUMBAI: For a currency called Mumbai police, devalued by the latest terror attack, here's a pat on the back: diamond merchants say the cops handed over a packet of diamonds found amidst the rubble.
The pieces of evidence picked from the site over the last two days were sifted through and diamonds found were returned to the association by the police, said Bharat Shah, president of the Mumbai Diamond Merchants' Association."The police have been very cooperative in this tough time," he added.
In fact, the police also recovered diamonds from volunteers who offered help to the blast victims on Wednesday. "Those pieces were also given back to us," said a source.
The police confirmed the same. "In the last two days, we recovered about 20 to 25 pieces of diamonds. We had kept them in the safe till this evening. Now, we have handed them over to the association."
Meanwhile, the search along the Opera House lanes that were strewn with diamonds is still on. As evening set in yesterday, the streets were completely cleaned and all the rubble was stuffed in cartons and buckets. "We still have two boxes of earth and silt that need to be sieved. That work is going on," said a diamond merchant.
The found diamonds already found have been sealed and diamond merchants, added sources, have decided against handing them over to the police.
Members have been asked to file their claims with a detailed description of the stones if they have lost any diamonds. The association will then go through the claims and return the diamonds to the genuine claimants, added a source.
The other stones-small, big, uncut, clear or pink-will all be auctioned off. The money will go to those who have lost a family member or were injured in the blast, said Shah.
For once, a shiny piece of stone will be put to good use, said a trader.