The government yesterday received 300 applications from would-be prospectors to scour the bed of the Kelani River, where last week sand dredgers discovered gold and sparked a small gold rush.

N.P. Wijayananda, chairman of the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB), said only people living in the area above 18 years of age would be eligible for permits.

He added that a mobile administrative unit had been set up at Kumarimulla in Pugoda run jointly by the GSMB and the Dompe Divisional Secretariat.

Applications for permits were distributed to local residents, which required a deposit of 2,000 rupees (US$15.13).

About 2,000 people descended on the river after the dredgers turned up quantities of gold from the black sands of the Kelani River last week.

The GSMB soon stepped in, saying the impromtu prospecting activities were illegal and a threat to the environment.

“People are using mercury, among other substances, to separate gold from sediment, and this could harm the environment,” Wijayananda said last week.

The permits, which authorize prospecting and mining for a period of three months, also require prospectors to be accompanied by supervisors from the GSMB.

One villager, Somathilake Appuhamy, said the discovery of gold was a boon for the largely poor local villagers.

“Our daily income was about 800 rupees, but that has increased now to about 3,000 rupees,” he said.