“Gold hallmarking” Becomes Mandatory

What is the News? The government has announced the phased implementation of mandatory Gold Hallmarking of Jewelry, with effect from June 16, 2021.

What is gold Hallmarking?

• The Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) operates the gold and silver hallmarking scheme in India. It defines hallmarking as the accurate determination and official recording of the proportion of a precious metal(gold) in an article(Jewelry).
• Hence, this means that it will guarantee the purity or fineness of precious metal articles.

Which metals are covered under the scheme?

• The Government of India has notified two categories under the purview of hallmarking—gold jewelry and gold artifacts and silver jewelry and silver artifacts.
• Therefore, hallmarking in India is available for the jewelry of only two metals—gold and silver.

Which metals have been exempted from hallmarking?

• Export and re-import of jewelry as per Trade Policy of Government.
• Jewelry for international exhibitions and government-approved B2B domestic exhibitions.
• Watches, fountain pens, and special types of jewelry such as Kundan, Polki, and Jadau.

What was the need of making Gold Hallmarking mandatory?

• India is the biggest consumer of gold. However, the level of hallmarked jewelry is very low in the country. At present, only 30% of Indian gold jewelry is hallmarked.
• This is due to the non-availability of sufficient assaying and hallmarking centers (A&HC) responsible for a low level of hallmarked jewelry. Hence, Gold Hallmarking has been made mandatory.

Phase wise implementation:

• In the first phase, gold hallmarking will be available only in 256 districts.
• Jewelers having an annual turnover above Rs 40 lakh will come under its purview.
• Moreover, there will be no penalty imposed till August 2021.

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Source: Indian Express