BIS to scale up silver hallmarking testing as buyers shift from costly gold       

Silver hallmarking has been voluntary since 2005, and from September 2025 onwards, hallmarked silver articles carry a Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number, enabling buyers to verify purity. The number of silver jewellery articles hallmarked rose to 5.9 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year from 3.2 million in 2024-25.

“Last year, we introduced HUID for silver jewellery as well, and demand is increasing. We have taken stock of the requirements and are ready to take up silver jewellery testing in a big way in our laboratories. We will be able to handle the requirement within our own labs for roughly the next two years. Within that period, we will expand referral and assay laboratories across the country. The number of silver jewellery articles hallmarked rose to 5.9 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year from 3.2 million in 2024-25, according to official data. Currently, BIS recognizes around 230 Assaying and Hallmarking Centres for testing silver jewellery, says BIS Deputy Director General (Laboratories) Nishat S Haque.

BIS has set close to 23,000 standards in total, of which about 700 are mandatory, and the laboratory network will keep expanding to match the load, she said, citing recent empanelments for CCTV security, power-transmission-line and petrochemical testing.