Mumbai: The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) in association with Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB) will be organizing the Diamond Detection Expo & Symposium (DDES 2015) on Dec 15-16, 2015 at the BDB in Mumbai.

The two-day event aims to provide a platform for companies offering machines & equipment for the detection of synthetic diamonds, as well as leading laboratories and service providers to interact with the trade. It will impart knowledge on various techniques to detect synthetic diamonds and keep players in the gem & jewellery industry abreast with latest developments in the field, the organizers said.

DDES will have two simultaneous activities – an exhibition where products and services will be displayed and seminar sessions where knowledge will be shared. While entry will be free to all trade members dealing in diamonds & diamond jewellery, entry to the seminars will be through pre-registration only. The event is part of the ongoing efforts of GJEPC and BDB to prevent undisclosed mixing of natural and synthetic diamonds, some instances of which had been seen by the trade.

A Natural Diamond Monitoring Committee (NDMC) was formed with representatives from the GJEPC, BDB, GJF, GIA and other trade bodies in the sector to study the issue and recommend steps to maintain consumer confidence in natural diamonds. Spreading awareness about detection methods and machines; driving innovation in technology through co-ordination among research bodies; lowering of acquisition costs of detection technology through increased scale and wider participation were some of the recommendations of a study undertaken by NDMC.