The government on Thursday announced the start of the fourth phase of mandatory hallmarking of gold jewellery and gold artifacts, covering an additional 18 districts.

Since the launch of mandatory hallmarking on June 23, 2021, over 40 crore gold jewellery items have been hallmarked with a unique ID, ensuring greater trust and transparency for consumers.

The fourth phase, effective from November 5, covers 18 districts in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Odisha, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, an official statement said.

With the implementation of the fourth phase, the total number of districts covered under mandatory hallmarking now stands at 361.

The government's initiative has increased the number of registered jewellers from 34,647 to 1,94,039 and the number of assaying and hallmarking centres from 945 to 1,622.

Consumers can verify the authenticity of hallmarked gold jewellery using the BIS CARE mobile app and file complaints about product quality or misuse of BIS marks.

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