Mandatory hallmarking of gold bullion will not be applicable from July 1

Compulsory hallmarking of gold bullion will not be mandatory from July 1. According to reports, this is because the central government is still in talks with the stakeholders on this matter.
Sources in the Consumer Affairs Ministry said that there is a lot of confusion among people that mandatory hallmarking is going to be implemented on gold bullion from July 1, whereas it is not so. However, hallmarking is already applicable to jewellery.
Sources said that mandatory hallmarking will not be applicable for gold bullion from July 1. The process of making it mandatory has just started. A sub-committee has been formed to start this process. Apart from this, discussions are going on with all the stakeholders on this matter.
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) chief Pramod Kumar Tiwari had said in March this year that the government is planning to make hallmarking of gold bullion mandatory and is ready with draft guidelines.
Sources further said that discussions are on with the stakeholders to finalize the guidelines. Gold bullion is used as a raw material for jewellery manufacturing and its purity is of paramount importance considering the large volume of jewellery.
Hallmarked gold bullion will help in ensuring the purity of gold jewellery being manufactured in the country. India is the world's largest gold consumer and importer. About 700-800 tonnes of gold is imported annually in the country.