Mumbai: A new disciplinary committee will deal with misconduct in India’s diamond trade under plans approved by the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC).

The GJEPC teamed up with the Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB) and the Mumbai Diamond Merchants’ Association (MDMA) to form the Trade Disciplinary Committee. The 21-member panel will handle cases including fraud, non-disclosure of synthetics, false inscriptions on gems and jewelry and other ethical breaches.

The committee will comprise three representatives each from the GJEPC, the BDB and the MDMA. These nine members will then appoint another 12. Participants will serve three-year terms.

The GJEPC approved the move at its 50th annual general meeting in Mumbai on December 20. Members at the meeting also gave the go-ahead to changes to the GJPEC’s code of ethics to enable it to become a member of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB). The WFDB accepted the GJEPC earlier this year, adding more than 6,000 diamond and jewelry exporters to its membership.