The gems and jewellery industry said on Thursday the government should allow the import of gold under open general licence and introduce zero duty on gold imports.
"The government should allow gold imports under open general licence by any member of the All India Gems and Jewellery Development Council having a certain annual revenue earning or greater than Rs 50 crore (Rs 500 million)," All India Gems & Jewellery Trade Federation chairman C Vinod Hayagriv said.
Gold imports under OGL will allow jewellers and jewellery makers to import directly and lower costs and make a better return on high investments, Hayagriv said.
The government should also introduce zero duty for gold imports so as the world trade shifts to India.
Indian importers will then import gold, scrap gold, set up refineries, refine the gold and supply to domestic trade and re-export, he said.
There is an opportunity to make a brand India Bar gold that the world will consume similar to Emirates or Swiss bars today, Hayagriv said.
And if the duty is not bought down, the GJF wants the government to allocate 25 per cent of the duty collected to be ploughed back into the sector to improve trade, he said.
GJF also sought an allocation of Rs 350 crore (Rs 3.5 billion) for setting up jewellery parks to rehabilitate craftsmen from city centres and unhygienic buildings.
Moreover, the body sought Rs 75 crore (Rs 750 million) for a national festival to garner worldwide publicity for India's jewellery trade.
It also said the government should allow identity cards in the form of smart cards for easy and safe transit of jewellery across country.
Apart from all this, it demanded a reduction in bank (interest) rates for working capital at a sub-8 per cent level from the existing 11-12 per cent per annum and called for reduction in bank interest rates for gold loans to 2.50 per cent from the existing 4.50 per cent per annum.
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