Sale Of Gold Jewellery And Gold Artefacts Hallmarked Without Six-Digit Code To Be Banned From April 1

Sale of gold jewellery and gold artefacts hallmarked without six-digit alphanumeric HUID -- unique identification number -- shall not be permitted from April 1, the government on Friday said. Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday chaired a meeting to review the activities of Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). To promote quality culture in micro scale units, it has been decided that the BIS will provide 80 per cent concession on the certification/minimum marking fee across various product certification schemes. Gold hallmarking is a purity certification of the precious metal. It was voluntary in nature till June 16, 2021.

After that, the government decided to implement mandatory gold hallmarking in a phased manner. In the first phase, it was made mandatory in 256 districts and 32 more districts were added in the second stage, taking the total number to 288 districts. 51 more districts are being added. "starting from 1st April 2023, the sale of only gold jewellery with HUID shall be permitted," an official statement said.

Nidhi Khare, additional secretary in the department of consumer affairs, said that "in consumers interest, it has been decided that after March 31st, sale of gold jewellery and gold artefacts hallmarked without HUID will not be permitted." At present, she said four digits as well as six-digit HUID are being used currently. She said the hallmarked gold jwellery items are being sold across the country, even in those districts where it is not mandatory yet because of consumers demand for quality product.

Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number is a six-digit alphanumeric code consisting of numbers and letters. HUID will be given to every piece of jewellery at the time of hallmarking and it is unique for every piece of jewellery. The jewellery is stamped with the unique number manually at the Assaying & Hallmarking Centre (AHC). In the meeting, Goyal directed the BIS to augment the testing infrastructure in the country. The BIS was told to increase the frequency of product testing and market surveillance depending on the criticality of components used for the consumer safety.

BIS should also increase the frequency of lab inspection. BIS has been directed to enhance market surveillance for different products such as pressure cooker, helmets, and other consumer products to ensure product safety. BIS has proposed Quality Control Orders (QCO) for 663 products in the coming time. Currently, there are 462 products covered under QCOs, the statement said. "In an effort to promote quality culture in micro scale units, BIS is providing an 80 per cent concession on the certification/minimum marking fee across various product certification schemes of BIS," the statement said.

Additionally, units located in the northeast will continue to receive an extra 10 per cent concession. "We are committed to ensuring that all products in India meet the highest quality and safety standards," Goyal said. These measures shall promote micro scale units, enhance the testing infrastructure, and develop a culture of quality consciousness among citizens, he added.

(PTI)