Editor’s Note
This report highlights a concerning trend of gold purity fraud, where consumers are sold lower-carat gold than advertised. It serves as a critical reminder for buyers to verify certifications and purchase from reputable sources.
Manish (name changed), a resident of Khurja, went to a finance company that provides gold loans one day. He had 20 grams of gold jewelry, which he had made from a local shopkeeper. When his gold jewelry was checked at the finance company, the company refused to give him a loan. The company said that this gold was 14 carat and the company does not give loans on gold less than 16 carat. Hearing this, Manish was surprised because he had paid the shopkeeper for 16 carat gold.
Such fraud can happen to you too. In such a situation, it is important to know when buying gold whether the gold you are paying for is of the same carat. Also, it is important to know many other things that can tell whether the gold you are buying is pure or not. A small mistake can trouble you like Manish.
Whenever you buy gold, you must check its purity. Also, you should look at the proper bill and many other important things. Don’t let any shopkeeper give you gold of lower carat in the name of 22 carat or 18 carat. Keep these 5 things in mind when buying gold:
When buying gold jewelry, it is important to see the BIS Standard Mark. The BIS logo is triangular in shape. This is the first mark of hallmark on jewelry. The BIS logo means that the purity of the gold has been tested at a BIS-certified center. If this mark is on the gold jewelry, understand that the gold is fine. This mark guarantees the quality of the gold.
Gold jewelry has a hallmark related to its purity. Be sure to look at this when buying gold. If there is no hallmark, do not buy that gold. This hallmark tells how pure the gold is in the jewelry. The price of the jewelry is determined by the purity of the gold. The higher the carat of gold you take, the more gold it contains. And its price is that much higher. Higher carat means the gold is more pure. In this, carat is represented by the English letter K.
When buying gold jewelry, it is also important to see the HUID code. This code is the third mark made on jewelry. It is called the Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number. This is a 6-digit code. It contains alphabets (A to Z) and numerics (1 to 9). For example – A123BC, B456CD, C789EF, etc. This code is different for each piece of jewelry. You can check this code through the ‘Verify HUID’ feature on the BIS Care App. The code helps you ensure that the gold you are buying is genuine and its purity is correct.
When buying gold jewelry, it is very important to see where you are buying it from. In small towns, there can be a difference in the purity of gold bought from local shopkeepers. Even if the jewelry has a BIS mark, hallmark, and HUID code, do not forget to take a proper bill from the shopkeeper. There have also been many cases where many local shopkeepers put fake hallmarks on jewelry. The proper bill also has the shopkeeper’s GST number. You can search on the official GST website services.gst.gov.in/services/searchtp using that number.
After all the things are complete, also check the purity of the gold through a machine. This machine is also called a caratometer. Nowadays, many good shops also have a machine to test gold. Many big brands keep this machine in their stores. If you want, you can also get the purity of gold bought from a local shopkeeper tested on these machines. This immediately reveals the purity of the gold.