Top 5 Fact About Gold. What does the hallmark on gold represent?

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The government has made hallmarking of gold jewelry mandatory in India from June 16, 2021. This comes two decades after the introduction of hallmarking of gold voluntarily in India. In the first phase, gold hallmarking will be available only in 256 districts, and jewelers with an annual turnover of more than Rs 40 lakh will be covered.

 

 The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is the designated authority to enforce hallmarking of gold jewelry. The move is expected to bring transparency to the jewelry trade and increase trust among consumers.

 

 

 1. What does the hallmark on gold represent?

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 It is a quality certificate issued by BIS which guarantees the purity of gold in certain jewelry. This certificate will be issued to all the registered jewelers based on purity tests at the certified centers.

 

 Hallmarking has been allowed on 14, 18, and 22-carat gold jewelry. Gold in additional carats, 20, 23, and 24, will also be allowed for hallmarking in due course.

 

 2. What is Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme, and what are its benefits?

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 In how many districts has hallmarking been made mandatory?

 

 According to the ministry, "based on extensive consultations with the stakeholders," it has been decided that the hallmarking will start initially from 256 districts of the country with the test marking centers.

 

 It would not be wrong to say that since there are initial issues involved, mandatory hallmarking has been implemented in India in a phased manner. Initially, this has been done in 256 districts, which have test marking centers.

 

 However, the ministry has not given any date from which the next phase of mandatory hallmarking will start in the remaining districts.

 

 Under the hallmarking scheme of BIS, a jeweler is required to be registered to sell hallmarked jewelry.

 

 BIS is the authorized authority for testing and hallmarking centers. The BIS (Hallmarking) Regulations were effective from June 14, 2018, but have now been made mandatory. India is the only country with significant gold consumption which did not have mandatory hallmarking of gold.

 

 

 

 3. Which metals are covered and exempted for hallmarking in India?

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 Through a notification issued on June 14, 2018, the government notified two categories- gold jewelry and gold artifacts; and silver jewelry and silver artifacts – within the scope of hallmarking. Hence, hallmarking in India is available for the jewelry of only two metals, gold and silver.

 

 However, a certain category of jewelry and articles will be exempted from the mandatory requirement of hallmarking.

 

 Jewelers with annual turnover up to Rs 40 lakh are exempted from mandatory hallmarking.

 

 According to the Department of Consumer Affairs, "Export and Re-import of Jewelry as per Trade Policy of Government of India - Jewelry for International Exhibitions, Jewelry for B2B Domestic Exhibitions approved by the Government will be exempted from mandatory hallmarking."

 

 According to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, watches, fountain pens, and special types of jewelry such as Kundan, Polki, and jade will be exempted from hallmarking.

 

 

 4. Let us now know why hallmarking is mandatory?

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 Hallmarking will enable consumers/jewelry buyers to choose the authentic option and avoid unnecessary confusion while buying gold.

 

 Currently, only 30% of Indian gold jewelry is hallmarked. It brings confidence in the buying process of an item that costs around ₹50,000 per 10 grams.

 

 As per the government, hallmarking of jewelry/artifacts is required to enhance customer satisfaction and the credibility of the goods on offer and sale process through third-party assurance for apparent purity/beauty of gold.

 

 Consumer protection is another major priority that will be met in the process. The government believes that this move will help India develop into a major gold market center globally.

 

 

 5. Is hallmarking mandatory for all jewelers?

 

 The government has decided not to impose any penalty in implementing gold hallmarking until August 2021 to provide time to jewelers and stockists troubled by old non-hallmarked stock. In November 2019, hallmarking of gold jewelry was made mandatory from January 15, 2021, as per the government. Then the deadline was extended to June 1 and then to June 15, 2021.

 

 Let us now know whether there is any infrastructure available for this or not.

 

 There has been a 25% increase in the number of Assaying & Hallmarking centers A&H centers in India in the last five years. The number of such centers has increased from 454 to 945. 940 Assay and Hallmarking Centers are currently operational. Out of this, 84 centers have been established in different districts under the government subsidy scheme. These centers can hallmark 1,500 articles a day, and the estimated hallmarking capacity of these centers is 140 million articles per year.

 

 Let us tell you right here that according to the World Gold Council, there are about 4 lakh jewelers in India, out of which only 35,879 have been BIS-certified.

 

 So now you must have come to know about gold hallmarking and why it is needed. Also, which metals have been covered for hallmarking in India and which are exempted, in which districts it has been made mandatory, etc.