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Monday, 26th April 2004 (6414 views)

The Indian government has decided to establish a network of gold testing centres in conjunction with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), MMTC and state governments.<BR/><BR/>The assaying and hallmarking centres will test for the purity of gold in jewellery.<BR/><BR/>Union consumer affairs secretary Navin B Chawla announced in a press release that more than 70 assaying and hallmarking centres were expected within a year, catering to three lakh jewellers in the country. <BR/><BR/>The Indian central government has requested state governments and Union territories administration to set up assaying centres, six national test house laboratories as well as four BIS laboratories have been asked to equip themselves with necessary facilities, and MMTC has been asked to set up 15 centres across the country in addition to the existing facility in Delhi, according to The Financial Express.<BR/><BR/>Public sector facilities are also planned and the government intends to contribute 50 per cent of the cost of essential equipment and instruments required for setting up of the first assaying laboratory in the state or Union territory.<BR/><BR/>Under the existing voluntary scheme of hallmarking of gold jewellery, the BIS licensee jewellers have been asked to hallmark at least 25 per cent of the stocks held by them by June 30th 2004.

 

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