GJC recommends cut in Customs duty on Gold to 4 per cent

Kolkata, 24 June   (HS) : In an appeal to the Union Finance ministry, the country’s Gem and Jewellery Industry has requested Union Finance minister Nrmala Sitaraman to reduce the rate of Customs duty on Gold from present 10 per cent to six per cent to help maintain a healthy growth of the industry and no longer making it attractive for gold smugglers.

In a representation to the ministry before the next month’s union budget to help protect the interest of  about 500,000 of its members, All India Gem and Jewellery Domestic Council (GJC), said that  in view of such a high rate of customs duty on the yellow metal, imposed by the union government during the tenure of the UPA government led by Prime minister Manmohan Singh,the illregal trade of gold smuggling had become very attractive for a section of dubious players in the Rs 4,50,000 crores worth of industry.

Informing this Shaankar Sen,Vice Chairman, GJC here today said ‘we hope we have been able to convince the union finance minister as well as its top officials about the dangerous impact of such a high rate of customs duty in spite of the fact that such s high rate of central taxes had been playing a major role in adding as much as Rs 35,000 crores to the central coffers’.

Every year our country imported as much as 650 tonnes of pure gold  ot which as much as 150 tonnes comes through illegal means and smuggling routes  depriving the national exchequer to a great extent, Sen said and claimed that once the Customs duty was brought down to about 4 per cent,which was still higher than the customs duty of only 2 per cent on gold till 2013-14, the government would not lose any money because of much higher volute of legal trade and gold business in the country.

We hope that the government was fully convinced about our arguments and might take a steps to reduce the customs duty be several percentage points  and announce them in the coming budget.

Speaking more about other problems being faced by the industry, Sen said they had also requested the government give a fresh look into the proper executing of the Gold Monetisation Scheme by issuing    them in the form of a bond to create a level playing field for all .

By issuing the new Gold bond  if the government was able to convince the large temple authorities of the country and its common citizens as the owner of a total amount of over 22,000 tonnes of gold bars and gold ornaments, that it was more worthwhile to invest their own gold ornaments in the government bond instead of keeping them idle in their lockers, it would be beneficial both for them and for the nation as well.

Against paying an interest rate of about 3.5 per cent per annum  the government would be able to stop its total import of gold(of 650 tones annually), stop its black marketing and be able to use the additional quantity of gold as part of its foreign exchange reserves which would in turn push up the economy of the country to a great extent, Sen said and hoped that the present government would take a positive stand to make a great leap forward to make  India as the 5th largest economy of the world soon.

 Earlier elaborating other plans he said the All India Gem and Jewellery Domestic Council (GJC), would organise its flagship event promoting a common platform to share expertise and knowledge, called – Manthan Gems and Jewellery Conclave 2019 in Mumbai on 2-3 July.

The two day event would witness over a 1,000 plus attendees,and among others who would address the gathering at Manthan 2019 would include leaders like  Abhishek Munjal, Director, Hero Cycles; Asher O, MD, Malabar Gold, Gaurav Singh Kushwala, Founder, Bluestone,. Murugavel Janakiraman, Founder and CEO, BharatMatrimony Group; RS Sodhi, MD, Amul; Rajeev Kapur, MD, Steelbird Hi-Tech India Limited; Ramesh Nair, CEO and Country Head JLL and; Sachin Jain, MD, Forevermark, Sen said.