Modus operandi employed by diamond jewellery businesses to launder money involves import of cheap, synthetic diamonds that are usually overvalued by over 100 times, it is learnt.
At least eight diamond workers in Surat have died by suicide in the past three months with about 15,000 laid off while the industry's losses have increased from 1% to 15-20% annually in the last five years.
India exported lab diamonds worth $216.07 million in financial year 2017-18. The latest numbers – between April 2022 & February 2023 – stand at $1568.55 million.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while announcing the allocation for lab-grown diamonds in the 2023 Budget, had called it an 'emerging sector with high employment potential'.
Losing access to Russian diamonds over long term would devastate the industry, jeopardising thousands of jobs in India and hitting major trading centers across the world.
Even though exports to India make up just about 10% of Russian direct sales, Indian diamantaires fear they could end up on the frontline of the war in Ukraine.
Surat Diamond Bourse, currently under construction, is expected to open in 3 or 4 months. It is expected to house nearly 4,400 merchants and employ about 1.5 lakh people.
The Bads of Bollywood isn’t just about the film industry’s chaos. It’s also a show about India’s chaos: the narratives, the gatekeepers, the false morality.
SEBI probe concluded that purported loans and fund transfers were paid back in full and did not amount to deceptive market practices or unreported related party transactions.
Many really smart people now share the position that playing cricket with Pakistan is politically, strategically and morally wrong. It is just a poor appreciation of competitive sport.
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