Mumbai: Post the implementation of mandatory hallmarking from 16th June 2021, the Indian jewellery industry was seeking clarity on a host of concerns with regard to the new rules of hallmarking. India’s Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), the apex body of the gem and jewellery trade, organised a webinar on 28th June, with the authority and keynote speaker Mr. Pramod Kumar Tiwari, Director General, Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to address queries concerning the manufacturing, retail and the end consumers .

Mr. Tiwari fielded questions from the industry and announced some key developments on hallmarking during the session.

• An advisory committee will be formed to address the concerns of the jewellers
• Additional gold purities of 20k, 23k, and 24k will also be allowed for hallmarking.
• BIS is thinking of a subsidy to the tune of 75% for hallmarking centres to sustain despite low volumes.
• Since BIS made registration free, jeweller registrations have climbed to 40,000 from 36,000 in a matter of days.
• The manufacturer and retailer are allowed to stamp their logos on the jewellery in addition to the hallmark.
• Retailers can bulk upload inventory to the assaying centres without any need for manual entries.
• All existing hallmarked jewellery need not be re-hallmarked with HUID.
• Any household jewellery can be sold to any retailer/jeweller without being hallmarked
• The jewellery photograph is also not mandatory right now.
• The HUIDs of melted stock will be disabled.
• Hallmarking has no expiry date as of today. This point will be raised at the Advisory Committee meeting.
• It is not mandatory to Hallmark jewellery exhibited at Domestic B2B trade shows approved by state or central government as there are no sales happening.
• In case the jewellery is made with two metals, hallmarking is only mandatory as of now only for the gold and silver component in the jewellery.
• Jewellers will be issued a BIS advisory for minor variance in karatage, but a variance of 40 ppt or more will incur a notice.

Speaking at the Webinar Mr. Colin Shah, Chairman, GJEPC said, “16th June, 2021, was a historic day in the history of the jewellery industry in India. In all our meetings with Mr. Piyush Goyal, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, the goal was very clear: to protect the interest of the consumer. On behalf of GJEPC, I thank BIS for today’s session, and Mr Pramod Tiwari for his honest and frank response to our questions. We are with you for the whole journey. GJEPC appreciates the acceptance of industry’s suggestion by BIS to form an Advisory Committee to streamline issues raised by the industry for a smooth transition.”

Mr. K. Srinivasan, Convener, Gold Jewellery Panel, GJEPC commented, “With the implementation of mandatory hallmarking, as an industry we are certainly aspiring to take this industry to the next level. It’s a significant step towards transparency. This would instil trust in the domestic consumers and will boost confidence among the international buyers.”

Most of the queries were clarified by the Director General at the webinar, but few concerns and clarifications would be taken up in the advisory committee meeting .