DISPLAY REQUIREMENTS AT SALES OUTLETS
Recently, the Bureau of Indian Standards has issued the ‘Guidelines for Grant, Operation, Surveillance & Cancellation of Certificate of Registration of Jewellers’. In pursuance of the same, retail outlets with BIS Hallmarking Registration are receiving notices from the BIS regarding additional mandatory display requirements to be complied with at sales outlets.
These display requirements are highlighted hereunder –
Outside the Outlet
1. The registered jeweller shall display the logo of the BIS with the wording “Hallmarked Jewellery available for sale”
2. The BIS certificate of registration for sale of hallmarked articles shall be displayed prominently.
Inside the Outlet
1. The hallmark that one can expect to see on a hallmarked article shall be displayed prominently including all components.
2. A magnifying glass of minimum 10X magnification shall have and make available to customers for them to be able to verify the hallmark on the jewellery/artefact.
3. A weighing balance of 0.01g accuracy shall have and make available to customers for verification of weight of the jewellery/artefact.
4. The contact details of the BIS Office shall be displayed for queries and complaints (as may be available on www.bis.gov.in).
5. Hallmarking charges shall be displayed –
a. ₹35 per article for gold jewellery/artefacts.
b. ₹25 per article for silver jewellery/artefacts.
Surveillance Measures
It is expected that the process of market surveillance by the BIS will be commencing soon, which involves randomly verifying the authenticity or HUID codes, drawal of samples for testing, as well inspection as the aforementioned display requirements. Jewellers must mandatorily cooperate with the authorised representative of the BIS during such assessment.
If the jeweller is found to be not in compliance with the aforementioned display requirements, a warning letter will be issued on the first reported non-compliance. The jeweller shall be required to submit a corrective action along with the evidence of that within 72 hours of receipt of the said warning letter. In case no response in respect of the same is received by the BIS, action towards cancellation of registration may be initiated.
Mandatory Registration
Since June 1, 2021, it is compulsory for all jewellers selling gold jewellery/artefacts (manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers) with a turnover of more than ₹40 lakh to mandatorily have themselves registered with BIS.
This is a major step for consumers to protect the public against adulteration and to remove corruption within the industry. Retailers are also expected to gain from the step as it helps keep a check on supplier quality. Non-hallmarked jewellery is expected to be slowly be phased out, and non-registered jewellers will be disfavoured. It is only a matter of time as similar mandates are brought for other precious jewellery.
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Hallmarking- Bureau of Indian Standards
MANDATORY REGISTRATION OF JEWELLERS UNDER HALLMARK SCHEME FROM JUNE 16, 2021