Have to be No. 1 in Gems and Jewellery sector: Modi

The Dollar Business Bureau

PM Narendra Modi, urged a gathering of diamond industry barons at Surat, to make the country, the number one in gems and jewellery sector. Namo was in the city to unveil Hari Krishna Export’s diamond polishing unit at ‘Hira Bourse SEZ’ in Icchapore village, and suggested the diamond barons that Surat’s success should extend beyond mere diamond-cutting and processing to a complete processed product.

“Enough of just diamond cutting and polishing work. The country has expectations from Surat. Should the country have it or not,” Modi asked. He continued that the city had made strides in the diamond industry and contributed nearly 6-7% to the country’s GDP but now needed to look at the entire portfolio of gems and jewelry.

He emphasized that diamond industry growth would result in more jobs and therefore champion the Make in India agenda. The sector contributed $32 bn in exports during 2015-16 and in recent times has only grown. Designers have been working relentlessly, and hence these designs should be promoted across the globe. The sector could as such seek for any assistance from the government in realizing the goal.

A Gems and Jewellery Export promotion Council (GJEPC) statistic finds India exports 95% of the world’s diamonds. The government taking into account the potential of growth in the sector has promoted it as a focus area for export promotion. At a recently concluded expo in Surat, Praveenshankar Pandya, Chairman at GJEPC shared that Surat is home to over 5,000 diamond manufacturing units, including some of the world’s largest and advanced affordable diamond cutting factories. As such the sector is only growing and has been adopting digital initiatives.