New Delhi: Sale of gold jewellery and gold artefacts without a Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number shall not be permitted in the country from April 1, Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution said on Friday.

Briefing reporters, Nidhi Khare, Additional Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, said, “In consumer interest it has been decided that after 31st March, 2023 sale of gold jewellery and gold artefacts hallmarked without HUID shall not be permitted.”

The HUID is a unique 6-digit alphanumeric code consisting of numbers and letters. According to the ministry, the HUID will be given to every piece of jewellery at the time of hallmarking and it is unique for every piece of jewellery. This unique number is stamped, manually, on jewellery at the Assaying & Hallmarking centers.

“Earlier, the HUID used to be of four digits. As of now both HUIDs (4- and 6-digit) are used in the market. We are saying that after March 31 only 6-digit alphanumeric code will be allowed,” Khare said.

She said 256 districts were covered under Mandatory Hallmarking w.e.f 23 June 2021 and 32 more districts covered under Mandatory Hallmarking since June 1, 2022, increasing the number of total districts to 288. Additional 51 new districts with AHCs/OSCs established, whereby total districts covered would increase to 339, she said.

Khare said 10.56 crore pieces of gold jewellery articles have been Hallmarked till date during 2022-23. She further said that the number of operative BIS Registered Jewellers has increased from 1.

As per the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) guidelines, the BIS Hallmark consists of 3 symbols—BIS logo, Purity/Fineness Grade, and a six-digit alphanumeric code, which is known as the HUID.

Khare also informed that the BIS has decided to grant a concession of 80 per cent on Certification/Minimum Marking Fee for Micro Scale Units. Additionally 10 per cent concession on certification for units located in the North Eastern states is also provided, she said.