Kolkata: West Bengal Government in collaboration with Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) is developing a jewellery hub in Bonhooghly near Kolkata and also build two common facility centres (CFC) in the state.

For this a 6-acre plot has been allocated and the announcement was done on August 29 by the Bengal Commerce & Industry and Finance Minister, Dr. Amit Mitra.

Most of the jewellers who have workshops in the traditional jewellery hub of Bowbazar in Kolkata would be allotted plots there. This is a major effort by the State Government to bring down the level of pollution in Kolkata.

Plans are also on to build two common facility centres (CFC) in the state, which would house costly, state-of-the-art instruments for crafting jewellery.

Smaller jewellers who would not be able to afford the cost to make use of the instruments can make parts of their jewellery there, All India Trinamool Congress said in a statement.

In this connection, it must be mentioned that the State Government, in collaboration with the GJEPC, has initiated the process of getting a geographical indication (GI) registration, conventionally known as a GI tag, for Kolkata-made jewellery, under the brand name of ‘Kolkatti’.

The reasons for going for the GI registration of such jewellery are that these fine, hand-crafted jewellery are in big demand in the Middle East, US and UK, and, precisely because of this big demand, many people are selling jewellery, improperly branding them as Kolkata jewellery, AITC added.