Centre Notifies Fourth Phase of Mandatory Hallmarking From November 5, 2024
Fourth phase to cover additional 18 districts under Mandatory Hallmarking
The Central Government of India recently implemented the fourth stage of mandatory hallmarking under the Hallmarking of Gold Jewellery and Gold Artefacts Amendment Order, 2024. This stage will cover 18 additional districts where hallmarking centres have been set up under Mandatory Hallmarking. Following the implementation of the fourth stage, the total number of districts covered under Mandatory Hallmarking now stands at 361.
The Bureau of Indian Standards earlier implemented the first phase of mandatory hallmarking, which was launched on June 23, 2021. This phase covered 256 districts whereas the second phase commenced from April 4, 2022 where 32 districts were further added. This was followed by the third phase which was implemented from 6th September, 2023 and covered 55 newly added districts.
It is a notable achievement that the proactive measure by GOI has triggered over 4 lakh gold items being hallmarked with a unique HUID (Hallmark Unique Identification) number per day.
To check the list of 18 newly included districts for mandatory hallmarking, refer to the figure mentioned below.
The figure 1.0 shows the growth of hallmarking over the years. It shows the increase in the number of BIS registered jewellers and BIS recognised Assaying and Hallmarking Centers (AHCs).
Since the launch of Mandatory Hallmarking, the number of registered jewellers has increased from 34,647 to 1,94,039—a remarkable increase of more than five times. Similarly, the number of Assaying and Hallmarking Centers (AHCs) has grown from 945 to 1,622. It is remarkable that over 40 crore gold jewellery items have already been hallmarked with a unique HUID, ensuring greater trust and transparency for the consumers in the market.
The figure 2.0 shows the increase in the number of downloads of the BIS care app from 2021-2024 (till Nov 1).
BIS CARE- The official mobile application of BIS has the provision for the common consumers to verify the authenticity of hallmarked gold jewellery items bearing a HUID number.
If a consumer has the HUID of a gold article, he/she can access all kinds of information on the app, such as:
- The jeweller’s registration number.
- Assaying and Hallmarking Centre (AHC) details, including the AHC recognition number and address.
- Article Type (such as rings, necklaces, coins, etc.)
- Date of hallmarking when the jewellery was tested and marked.
- Purity of the metal (gold, silver, etc.)
The BIS Care App also enables consumers to file complaints about product quality, misuse of BIS quality marks, and deceptive advertisements. The app can be easily downloaded from the play store.
