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Informist, Friday, Dec. 6, 2024

 

--Consumer affairs secy: Hallmarking gold key to building trust, business 

--CONTEXT: Consumer Affairs Secretary Khare at CII Gems & Jewellery event

--Consumer affairs secy:Working to improve BIS hallmark recognition globally 

 

NEW DELHI - Hallmarking of gold jewellery is key to building consumer trust as well as improving sales of the jewellery business, Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare said on Friday, while emphasising the need for other countries to recognise the BIS certification for Indian bullion. "We have rolled out a hallmarking system in gold very well. We want to ensure our hallmarking is honoured in foreign countries," Khare said at the Gems and Jewellery Conference organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry here. 

 

Without disclosing the name, Khare said a certain country has refused to recognise the Indian BIS hallmark certification, despite the Indian government's push for the same. Though India mandated BIS hallmarking of gold and gold jewellery, the secretary said more needs to be done in terms of traceability and accuracy of gold jewellery. She assured that the industry would get support from the government for the same.

 

A BIS hallmark indicates that the jewellery meets the purity standards set by the Bureau of Indian Standards. In 2021, the government introduced hallmarking gold with a unique identification number to digitise information on purity and quality of gold jewellery. A consumer can check and authenticate hallmarked gold jewellery items with a unique identification number using the BIS CARE app. In 2023, the government prohibited sales of gold artifacts without the six-digit alphanumeric hallmark unique identification number to ensure traceability.

 

Since the launch of mandatory hallmarking, over 400 million gold items have been hallmarked with a unique identification number, Khare said. Around 361 districts across India are covered under mandatory hallmarking, she added. 

 

Khare further said the industry needs to showcase India's "unparalleled" craftsmanship in jewellery making by organising international fairs. She also stressed consumers' right to have accurate and upfront information on the purity and quality of gold and diamond jewellery. "I would like to bring lab-grown diamonds to the centre table, especially in an aspirational society like ours," Khare said. But consumers need to be informed it is synthetic and not natural diamond while advertising and selling, she added.

 

Reported by Afra Abubacker

Edited by Tanima Banerjee

 

 

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