Now Reading: BIS to scale up silver hallmarking as gold prices surge
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BIS to scale up silver hallmarking as gold prices surge
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) will ramp up silver jewellery testing after demand shifted from costly gold, a senior official said. Referral and assay laboratories for silver will expand nationwide within…
The Story in Brief
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) will ramp up silver jewellery testing after demand shifted from costly gold, a senior official said. Referral and assay laboratories for silver will expand nationwide within two years. Silver hallmarking has been voluntary since 2005, but from September 2025 hallmarked articles will carry a Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number for buyers to verify purity.
Hallmarked silver articles rose to 5.9 million in FY2025-26 from 3.2 million the previous year. BIS currently has around 230 Assaying and Hallmarking Centres for silver. BIS Deputy Director General (Laboratories) Nishat S Haque told PTI the agency is ready to take up silver testing in a big way and will handle requirements in-house for roughly two years before expanding labs.
The Indian Opinion
Silver hallmarking rising is good news for consumers, but the voluntary tag is a gap. With hallmarked silver articles doubling to 5.9 million in a year, demand is real. The real test is whether BIS can expand lab capacity and enforce purity standards as quickly as buyers shift from gold. Will the September 2025 HUID rule actually catch fakes?
Sources (2): thehindubusinessline.com, rediff.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
