The Centre’s grant of Rs 242 crore for lab-grown diamond (LGD) research at IIT Madras is helping build a world class ecosystem, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday. The FM had announced the grant in her budget speech for 2023-24.
The FM sounded bullish on the prospects for India’s gems & jewellery sector while addressing the gathering after inaugurating the new premises of Indian Institute of Gems & Jewellery (IIGJ) in the temple town of Udupi in coastal Karnataka.
“Students have come from Karwar, Chitradurga, Raichur, and Tamil Nadu. Some had no prior experience but are now running successful jewellery businesses,” she said. In FM’s presence, the IIGJ and IIT Madras signed an MoU for a specialised industry-oriented certification programme in lab-grown diamond technologies under the InCent LGD platform.
The IIGJ’s programme, Sitharaman said, will help bridge critical skill gaps, create job-ready professionals, boost value-added manufacturing and strengthen India’s position in the global LGD (lab-grown diamond) value chain, aligned with Make in India, Skill India and the goal of a self-reliant, globally competitive LGD ecosystem.
The new premises has shaped with funding support from Sitharaman under her MP local area development funds (MPLADS) and also with support from the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council and National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. The goal was to enhance employability among youth and women.
It is first of its kind institute in the South India. Udupi has a rich tradition in jewellery making, having over 100 retail stores and more than 5,000 artisans and craftsmen. Despite its heritage, the region lacked a modern technological orientation, a post by the FM on X said.
The institute at Udupi provides up-skilling for current workers and new skills for youth to make them globally competitive in design and manufacturing. The institute also provides training in various aspects of hand-crafted jewellery making, creating employment & entrepreneurial opportunities in the Gems & Jewellery sector.
The institute has 41 state-of-the-art jewellery manufacturing, CAD, casting, testing, and finishing machinery, including XRF gold-purity testing, CAD software, casting machines, plating units, and full production-line facilities – enabling both training and common facility centre (CFC) services.
The FM also interacted with the trainees under the PM Vishwakarma scheme at the institute. The IIGJ has trained more than 270 candidates under the PM Vishwakarma scheme.
