The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is preparing to significantly expand India’s silver-testing and hallmarking infrastructure as demand for certified silver jewellery rises across the country.
The move comes at a time when higher gold prices are encouraging more consumers to look towards silver jewellery and other silver products, increasing the need for reliable purity certification and stronger consumer protection.
BIS plans to strengthen both its referral laboratories and assaying facilities over the next two years, creating additional testing capacity to handle the anticipated growth in silver hallmarking.
Silver Hallmarking Demand Rises Sharply
Silver hallmarking has been available in India on a voluntary basis since 2005, but the system has gained greater importance in recent years as consumers become increasingly conscious about purity and certification.
The number of hallmarked silver articles has risen substantially.
Around 3.2 million silver articles were hallmarked during 2024-25, while the figure is expected to reach approximately 5.9 million during 2025-26.
This sharp increase has prompted BIS to prepare for a further expansion in demand.
At present, around 230 Assaying and Hallmarking Centres recognised by BIS are capable of testing and certifying silver jewellery across the country.
BIS expects its existing laboratory infrastructure to handle immediate requirements, while additional referral and assay laboratories are developed over the next two years.
HUID Brings Greater Traceability to Silver Jewellery
An important change in the silver hallmarking system came with the introduction of the Hallmark Unique Identification, or HUID, number for hallmarked silver articles from September 2025.
The unique identification system allows buyers to verify the authenticity and purity certification of hallmarked silver products.
By creating a traceable identity for individual hallmarked articles, the system is intended to reduce the possibility of fraudulent certification and improve consumer confidence in the jewellery market.
BIS officials believe the introduction of HUID has also contributed to increasing consumer interest in hallmarked silver.
For customers, the system provides an additional layer of assurance when purchasing jewellery, utensils and other valuable silver products.
Why Silver Hallmarking Matters
Unlike many ordinary consumer goods, precious-metal jewellery is difficult for buyers to assess simply by visual inspection.
Two silver ornaments may look identical while containing significantly different levels of actual silver.
Hallmarking provides an independent verification of purity and therefore reduces the information gap between jewellers and consumers.
As the silver jewellery market expands, adequate testing infrastructure becomes increasingly important to ensure that certification remains credible and accessible across the country.
The proposed laboratory expansion is therefore intended not merely to increase testing volumes but also to strengthen consumer confidence in the broader precious-metals market.
BIS Operates Extensive National Laboratory Network
The expansion of silver-testing capacity will build upon BIS’s existing national laboratory system.
The organisation currently operates 10 laboratories of its own, while approximately 440 laboratories operated by private and government organisations are recognised under the BIS system.
BIS began its Laboratory Recognition Scheme in 1985, allowing qualified external laboratories to participate in testing products according to Indian Standards.
The model has enabled BIS to create a considerably larger testing ecosystem than would have been possible through government laboratories alone.
These laboratories support testing across a broad range of products and industries, from construction materials and electrical equipment to consumer products and precious metals.
Nearly 23,000 Indian Standards Developed
BIS has developed close to 23,000 standards covering products, technologies, manufacturing processes and testing procedures.
Of these, approximately 700 standards are mandatory, requiring manufacturers or products falling within specified categories to comply with prescribed requirements.
Standards play an important role not only in consumer protection but also in industrial manufacturing.
Common testing requirements allow manufacturers, regulators and consumers to work from recognised specifications regarding safety, quality, performance and reliability.
The expansion of laboratory capacity therefore becomes increasingly important as more sectors adopt formal standards and certification.
BIS Tested Around 2.7 Lakh Product Samples
The scale of India’s certification ecosystem is also reflected in the volume of laboratory testing carried out by BIS.
Nearly 270,000 product samples were tested during the previous year, illustrating the growing demand for standards-based verification across Indian industry.
In the gold jewellery sector, BIS conducts market-surveillance testing of hallmarked products through its own laboratories rather than outsourcing this specific verification work.
Market surveillance allows the organisation to independently verify whether products being sold with BIS certification actually meet the standards associated with the mark.
The same emphasis on testing integrity is expected to become increasingly important as the market for hallmarked silver expands.
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Enter BIS Laboratories
BIS is also experimenting with newer technologies to modernise laboratory testing.
Among the initiatives being explored are artificial intelligence and robotic automation, which could improve testing consistency while reducing the amount of repetitive manual work involved in certain laboratory procedures.
One pilot programme involves the use of a robotic arm for cement testing.
If the pilot demonstrates improvements in accuracy, efficiency and repeatability, similar automation could potentially be introduced into other laboratory processes.
The development reflects a wider transformation taking place in India’s testing and certification ecosystem, where conventional laboratory procedures are gradually being supplemented by digital systems, automated equipment and data-driven monitoring.
Growing Silver Market Creates Need for Trusted Certification
The expansion of India’s silver hallmarking network comes at an important moment for the precious-metals market.
As gold becomes increasingly expensive for many households, silver is gaining attention as both jewellery and a store of value.
Increasing consumer demand, however, also creates greater opportunities for purity-related disputes and misleading claims.
A larger network of recognised assaying laboratories, combined with HUID-based traceability, could therefore make certified silver products easier to obtain while providing consumers with greater confidence regarding what they are purchasing.
For BIS, the objective is ultimately to ensure that the familiar standards mark represents something consumers can trust.
As India’s jewellery market evolves, hallmarking is increasingly shifting from a simple stamp of purity into a technology-backed system of verification and traceability — and the planned nationwide expansion of silver-testing facilities could become an important part of that transformation.
