The All India Gem Jewellery Domestic Council (GJC) on Monday claimed that barring big corporates, most jewellery shops remained shut in response to a nationwide strike call given by 350-odd jewellery associations to protest the new gold hallmarking rules. The Government, however, claimed that there was no impact as a very small section of jewellers closed their shops.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs released photos of big corporate jewellery showrooms like Tanishq, Kalyan Jewellers, Malabar Gold and Diamonds, PC Jewellers, PP Jewellers, Heera Panna Jewellers, Anand Jewellers, Kunal Jewellers, Caratlane, Shree Ganesh Jewellers, Talwarsons Jewellers, Lalchand, Epari Sadashiv Jewellers, Caratlane — which remained open in different parts of the country.
The jewellery bodies are against the Government’s Hallmarking Unique ID (HUID) system which they said has nothing to do with the purity of gold but is just a tracking mechanism. GIC has claimed that there has been a very strong response to a nationwide strike against the HUID system. Shops are closed for a day.
“Big corporates in the jewellery sector never participate in such strikes. Mostly individual and family-run jewellery shops in all four zones are shut for a day,” GIC said. However, in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, shops were shut till 12.30 pm due to the Onam festival, the jewelers body said.
The Ministry said the said call of strike was itself based on untenable grounds and an attempt was made to misinform fellow jewellers about the various provisions of hallmarking scheme. The ministry also released letters of jewellers’ bodies — All India Jewellers and Goldsmith Federation (AJGF), Swanakaar Sabha, Gems and Jewellery Manufacturer Association Organisation (GJMA), Sarva Swarnkaar Samaj Netrutva Vikas Sanstha which opposed the strike and supported the Hallmarking Unique ID (HUID) system.
“As expected, the misguided attempt by these limited set of persons to disrupt the normal functioning of jewellery business today, has failed miserably,” the ministry said.