The Union Government has mandated that all gold jewellery and artefacts sold after 31st March will have to carry a Hallmark Unique Identification Number (HUID). To tide over teething problems for businesses in complying with the order, the government will give 80 percent concession in marking fee for micro units across different products and an additional 10 percent concession to all units in the North East.
The Department of Consumer Affairs plans to strengthen the testing infrastructure available with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and its recognised labs to 10 times of its current capacity.
Nidhi Khare, Additional Secretary with the Department of Consumer Affairs, told CNBC TV18 that the move is aimed to ensure quality standards, adding that India will have to ensure that its markets comply with basic standards and satisfy consumers as it aims to become the 3rd largest economy in the world.
The government has identified several important products to bring Quality Control Orders (QCOs), for which stakeholder consultation being undertaken for 663 products. Apart from establishing India as a market of quality, Khare said that the aim is to make the consumer aware of how to look for quality products instead of cheap products being dumped. She stated that the government is looking at establishing quality standards for various sectors like construction, electronics, automobiles and durables.
In June 2021, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) made hallmarking of gold jewellery and artefacts mandatory. This was done so as to enhance the credibility of the jewellery and customer satisfaction through third party assurance for the marked purity of gold, consumer protection.
Starting from April 1, 2022, jewellers will be able to sell only 14, 18 and 22 carats of gold jewellery and other items that have been certified by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) for their purity.
Hallmarking is a process that verifies the gold content in jewellery and artefacts. It involves engraving a Hallmark Unique Identification Number (HUID) on each piece of jewellery at an authorised Assaying & Hallmarking centre. The HUID can be used to trace the source and quality of the gold.
The government has made this move to protect consumers from fraud and ensure uniform standards of gold quality across the country. According to BIS, there are about 940 Assaying & Hallmarking centres in India, out of which 256 are located in districts where hallmarking will be mandatory in the first phase.
Consumers can check whether their jewellery is hallmarked or not by looking for four symbols on it: BIS logo, purity in carat, identification mark or number of the hallmarking centre, and identification mark or number of the jeweller.
The HUID number provides a distinct identity to each piece of jewellery enabling traceability. It is critical to the credibility of Hallmarking and addressing complaints regarding purity of Hallmarked jewellery. In HUID based Hallmarking, registration of jewellers is automatic with no human interference. It is aimed at ensuring the purity of Hallmarked jewellery and checking any malpractice.
Jewellers who violate this rule could face a penalty of five times the price of the jewellery or one year imprisonment or both. However, jewellers can continue to buy back old gold jewellery without hallmark from consumers.
Overall, the mandatory hallmarking of gold jewellery and artefacts with HUID is a win-win for everyone. It brings about transparency, ensures consumers’ rights and obviates the chances of Inspector Raj. Anyone can get existing jewellery Hallmarked and get true valuation of Gold.
The HUID-based hallmarking offers consumers higher resale or exchange value of gold articles as quality standardization will lead to price parity. It also assures them of the purity of gold they buy.
(Edited by : Soham Shetty)
First Published: Mar 3, 2023 7:38 PM IST
