National News

GJC celebrates 25 years of gold hallmarking in India with felicitation of Union Minister Pralhad Joshi

Published

1 year ago

April 7, 2025

In a momentous occasion for India’s jewellery sector, the All India Gem and Jewellery Domestic Council (GJC) marked 25 years since the introduction of gold hallmarking in India with a grand celebration and felicitation ceremony honoring Pralhad Joshi, the Hon’ble Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, and Minister of New & Renewable Energy at GJS 2025

The event served not only as a tribute to the journey of hallmarking in India but also as a platform to chart an ambitious roadmap for the future, with a strong focus on expanding hallmarking coverage and fostering technological innovation.

In recognition of his continued support and instrumental role in advancing hallmarking reforms, Pralhad Joshi was felicitated by GJC for his leadership in steering policies that balance consumer protection with industry development. His ministry’s efforts, in collaboration with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), have been central to enhancing transparency and quality assurance in the jewellery sector.

In his address, Shri Joshi reiterated the government’s unwavering commitment to strengthening consumer trust while also simplifying compliance for jewellers. He emphasized the hallmarking system as a critical trust-building mechanism and a significant step toward formalizing and modernizing the Indian gold market.

One of the most significant announcements of the event was a joint goal set by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, BIS, and the jewellery industry: to expand mandatory gold hallmarking to 500 districts across India by the end of this financial year.

This expansion aligns with the broader objective of ensuring uniform quality standards nationwide, preventing consumer fraud, and integrating small and medium jewellers into the formal economy. GJC pledged its full support to assist local jewellers in meeting compliance standards and making hallmarking services accessible, especially in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

In a groundbreaking move to stimulate innovation in hallmarking technology, GJC and BIS jointly announced the launch of a Hackathon aimed at developing a non-destructive testing (NDT) method for hallmarking gold.

This initiative seeks to address a long-standing concern within the industry: the challenge of verifying hallmark authenticity without damaging the piece of jewellery. Currently, traditional methods often involve partial damage or alteration during testing, which discourages on-the-spot verification by consumers and retailers.

The hackathon is open to startups, research institutions, technologists, and innovators across India and will offer funding and incubation support to viable solutions. A successful NDT mechanism would be a game-changer for quality assurance, enabling real-time, damage-free hallmark authentication across retail outlets, trade shows, and even by consumers themselves.

The celebration of 25 years of hallmarking is a testament to India’s evolution into a more structured and credible jewellery market. From its early stages to now becoming an integral part of the industry’s value chain, hallmarking has grown into a symbol of trust, quality, and consumer empowerment.

With the government, BIS, and GJC joining hands to drive expansion and innovation, the next phase of hallmarking promises to be more inclusive, tech-enabled, and consumer-centric than ever before. The GJC’s proactive role in bridging policy, practice, and innovation reinforces its commitment to nurturing a responsible, transparent, and globally competitive jewellery sector in India.

Related Topics:2025 april exhibitions gjc gjs nationalnews tradeevents

Up Next

IGJS Jaipur 2025 bolsters global connections amidst mounting trade challenges

Don't Miss

Celebrating 100 years of Bhima Jewellery:Coffee table book launched at GJS 2025 to mark Bhima Jewellery’s centenary

Click to comment

Name*

Email*

Website

Name*

Email*

Website

0 Comments

Oldest

Newest Most Voted

National News

P N Gadgil Jewellers Delivers Record Q1 FY27 Revenue Of 24,130 Mn; With 41% Revenue Growth, 57% EBITDA Growth & 52% PAT Growth; YoY

Published

7 hours ago

July 28, 2026

JewelBuzz Spread The Buzz

P N Gadgil Jewellers Limited, one of the most reputed jewellers in the country, boasting 194 years of excellence in craftsmanship and trusted service in the retail business of gold, silver, and diamond jewellery, announced its unaudited financial results for the quarter ended 30^th June 2026.

Key Financial & Operational Highlights:

Retail Contribution: Retail sales continued to strengthen, with the retail share of total revenue increasing to 78% in Q1 FY27 from 70% in Q1 FY26, reflecting the Company’s continued focus on expanding its high-margin retail business.
Strong Same-Store Performance: The Company delivered a robust Same-Store Sales Growth (SSSG) of 46.1% YoY, driven by healthy customer footfalls and higher transaction volumes.
Improving Product Mix: The retail stud ratio improved to 10.9% from 9.9% in the previous quarter. Notably, the recently launched stores across Northern and Central India are delivering a significantly higher stud ratio in the range of 15% to 18%, validating the Company’s expansion strategy into markets with structurally higher demand for studded jewellery. Additionally, LiteStyle by PNG recorded an impressive stud ratio of 32.9%, highlighting strong customer acceptance of the newly launched lightweight jewellery brand.
Healthy Gold Retail Mix: Retail sales of Gold vedhani, bars and coins (GBC) accounted for 21.7% of total retail revenue during the quarter, while the average gold purchase per invoice is 4.84 grams. The Company’s (GBC) strategy continues to strengthen customer acquisition and retention, with the conversion to jewellery ratio improving to 53% in Q1 FY27 from 46% in FY26, and reinforcing the long-term value of this customer lifecycle strategy.
Retail Product-wise Performance: During the quarter, the diamond category continued to witness exceptional momentum, delivering 29% growth in value and 26% growth in volume, underscoring increasing customer preference for studded jewellery and supporting the Company’s premiumization strategy. The gold category recorded a robust 54% growth in value, while volumes remained broadly stable with only a 1% YoY moderation, reflecting healthy demand despite elevated gold prices. The silver category registered 131% growth in value, even as volumes softened slightly by 7% YoY.
Outstanding Festive Performance: The Company delivered a strong Akshay Tritiya performance, with festive sales increasing 80.3% YoY to Rs 2,514.1 Mn, driven by robust consumer demand, effective festive campaigns and continued market share gains during the festive season.
Higher Customer Engagement: Healthy customer acquisition continued across markets, with footfalls increasing 25.9% YoY to 214,587, while maintaining a robust conversion rate of 91.8%, reflecting strong brand recall, healthy demand and the Company’s ability to consistently convert store visits into purchases.
Growth in Transactions & Spending: Transaction volumes increased 26.3% YoY, while the Average Transaction Value (ATV) is Rs 92,264, indicating healthy customer engagement and higher spending per visit.

Strengthened Hedging Framework: The Company further enhanced its risk management practices by increasing its overall hedge coverage to approximately 70%, significantly reducing exposure to gold price volatility. The Company intends to increase hedge coverage to 80%+ in the near term, with a long-term objective of achieving near-full inventory hedge coverage (~100%), thereby enhancing earnings stability and reducing commodity price risk.
Underlying Operating Performance: The remaining unhedged inventory resulted in a unhedged gain of Rs 97 Mn during Q1 FY27, compared to Rs 101 Mn in Q1 FY26. Excluding this unhedged gain, Adjusted EBITDA increased to Rs 1,827 Mn from Rs 1,128 Mn, with the Adjusted EBITDA Margin improving to 7.6% from 6.6% in the corresponding quarter last year.
Adjusted Profitability: Excluding the net impact of the unhedged gain, Adjusted PAT stood at Rs 981 Mn in Q1 FY27, compared to Rs 618 Mn in Q1 FY26, translating into an Adjusted PAT Margin of 4.1%, as against 3.6% in the corresponding quarter last year.
Expansion Pipeline on Track: During the quarter, the Company remained focused on enhancing the productivity of its existing network while progressing site identification, franchise partner onboarding and operational readiness for its upcoming expansion, with a significant focus on Northern and Central region, in line with its growth strategy.

As of 30th June 2026, the Company operated 78 stores (77 in India and 1 in the U.S.A.). A few store launches are planned during Q2 FY27, with the majority of the year’s expansion scheduled across Q3 and Q4 FY27, in line with the Company’s phased rollout.