The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Government of India, issued a notification on 28th September. The notification permits the amendment of technical nature, typographical errors, or errors apparent on the face of records in the KP Certificate based on SOP and validated by the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). The amended policy condition shall also apply to pending imports of rough diamonds.
Colin Shah, Chairman, GJEPC commented “The notification is a step towards further enhancing the ease of doing business in the sector. This will smoothen the clearance import parcels of a rough diamond held due to technical errors at the customs end. India imports 1514.70 lakh carats of rough diamonds for cutting and polishing in the country and KP is a prerequisite for each shipment imported. Council thanks DGFT for the notification and recognizes the efforts of Customs at PCCC, Dept of Revenue, and Dept of Commerce for the cooperation and guidance provided in resolving the longstanding issue and strengthening the KP.”
GJEPC endorses the KP certificates received from the KP Issuing Authority abroad for clearance of rough diamonds imported from abroad. The GJEPC is the nodal agency for the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme and undertakes all KP certification within the country, as well as assist GOI’s representation on international fora on all KP related matters.
KPCS
KPCS is an international mechanism mandated by the UN to stop the trade of conflict diamonds which were being used to finance wars against legitimate governments. The Kimberley Process (KP) is a tripartite comprising of member states and regional economic integration organizations that are eligible to trade in rough diamonds as participants and the civil society & Industry as observers. 56 participants are representing 82 countries, with the European Community counting as a single participant. The participants include all major rough diamond producing, exporting, and trading countries.
