GJEPC proposes jewellery park near Mumbai

KOLKATA: The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council has proposed to develop a jewellery park on Thane-Belapur Road, 5 km from Mumbai. The move is aimed at boosting the Mumbai-based jewellery industry by providing modern facilities and services.

“Higher efficiency and better work culture is expected to bring difference to the business of gems and jewellery in terms of quality of work standards and environment,” said Praveen Shankar Pandya, chairman of GJEPC.

Pandya indicated that job work policy could be introduced in the diamond sector. The facility of job work is already allowed in China. In spite of labour being around 20% expensive in China than in India, global diamantaires are sending their diamonds to China for manufacturing purpose as job work policy in already in place there.

“We have proposed to the government to allow goods on consignment basis for manufacturing purposes, thus creating more jobs for artisans in the country,” Pandya said.

The gems and jewellery sector employs 3.5 million people in India, a million of them in the diamond business alone.