New Delhi (NVI): The government has made hallmarking of gold jewelry and artefacts compulsory across the country and jewellers will get one year to implement this order.
The hallmarking of an ornament tells you the amount of gold and other metal in an ornament.
Addressing a press conference for mandatory hallmarking of gold jewelry, Minister of Consumer Affairs Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan said hallmarking is to ensure that consumers are not cheated while buying gold ornaments and get the purity as marked on the ornaments.
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“After the hallmarking jewelers can only sell gold of three carat which will be 14, 18 and 22 carat,” he said.
The caratage is marked on jewelry in addition to fineness for convenience of consumers, that for 22 carat jewelry, 22K will be marked in addition to 916, for 18 carat jewelry, 18K will be marked in addition to 750 and for 14 carat jewelry, 14K will be marked in addition to 585.
He also informed that there are 892 assaying and hallmarking centres in 234 District locations across the country and so far 28,849 jewelers have been registered by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
While speaking about the reasons for the one-year implementation period, Minister said that this will ensure that Jewelers registration process can be completed and jewelers and retailers get time for clearing their old and existing stock.
