GJC Demands Extension Of Mandatory Hallmarking Date
GJC demands an extension of the mandatory hallmarking date, government preparing to implement hallmarking from June 1.
The All India Gem and Jewelery Domestic Council (GJC) has urged the government to extend the date of introduction of compulsory hallmarking for gold jewelery.
The council says the new wave of the Corona crisis poses new challenges for the industry. At the same time, there is not enough infrastructure in the country to make hallmarking mandatory.
In a letter to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, the council has sought to introduce hallmarking from June next year. Recently, the government had said that hallmarking for gold jewelery will become mandatory from June this year.
The government also said that this period will not be extended this time.
The GJC contends that according to the Bureau of Indian Standards (GJC) data, only 245 out of 733 districts in the country currently have Assessing and Hallmarking (A&H) centers available.
When one such center does not open in every district, it will not be appropriate to implement compulsory hallmarking.
According to the council, the government and BIS should first solve the fundamental problems, and only then they should implement them.
Significantly, the government has made full preparations to implement hallmarking on gold jewelery and other artifacts from June 1.
Gold hallmarking is done to certify the purity of gold jewelery and other items, which is currently voluntary in the country.
In November 2019, the central government announced that gold hallmarking would be made legal across the country from January 15, 2021.
On the demand of the jewelers, the government gave them more than a year to register themselves with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and complete the preparations.
The jewelers had asked for four more months for this, citing Covid-19.
Recently, Consumer Affairs Secretary Leena Nandan had told in a virtual press conference that the time will not be extended to implement hallmarking.
BIS Director-General Pramod Kumar Tiwari had also told that preparations have been completed to implement it from 1st June. Tiwari said that from June 1, jewelers will be able to sell only 14,18 and 22-carat gold jewelery.
The Bureau of Standards has been in the process of hallmarking itself for gold jewelery since April 2000. According to BIS, Hallmarking cannot be cheated in the purchase of gold jewelery.
India is the largest country in the world in the consumption of gold. It imports 700-800 tonnes of gold annually.
