BIS expands silver hallmarking testing

The India — Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) announced plans to scale up silver jewellery testing and expand its referral and assay laboratories nationally within two years, responding to increased demand as buyers shift from gold amid rising gold prices. Silver hallmarking, voluntary since 2005, now includes a Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number for articles from September 2025, enabling buyers to verify purity. The number of hallmarked silver articles rose from 3.2 million in FY2024-25 to 5.9 million in FY2025-26, with around 230 recognised Assaying and Hallmarking Centres. BIS is also piloting AI and robotics for faster, more transparent testing, including a robotic arm for cement testing and direct integration of equipment with its Lab Information Management System (LIMS). The agency's laboratory network has nearly tripled since 2014, now comprising 10 BIS labs, 440 recognised private labs, and 350 empanelled government labs. BIS Deputy Director General (Laboratories) Nishat S. Haque stated that the agency will handle silver testing requirements in-house for roughly two years before expanding. BIS also continues to run gold hallmarking surveillance in-house and has been tasked by the State Bank of India with testing note-sorting machines for counterfeit detection.