The committee set up to work out the modalities of a bullion hub had proposed a one-time amnesty scheme for consumers to declare their gold holdings, said Narendra Gupta, chief business officer of the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange on Monday.
The committee, appointed by the commerce ministry in October 2004, will shortly submit its recommendations to the government.
The proposed scheme will be on the lines of the voluntary disclosure of income scheme launched by the government in the mid-nineties.
Gupta, one of the committee members, said more than 15,000 metric tonnes of gold is lying idle with Indian families. Moreover, 23% of the world's physical gold is consumed in India, whose private holding is the highest in the world.
Annual gold imports into the country are around 600 tonnes and re-cycled gold 200 tonnes, he said.
"Gold continues to be a preferred route of investment for Indians," he said.
Notwithstanding all these factors, India has failed to become a bullion hub, he said.