Crisis in diamond city: Is Surat’s sheen dimming?
diamond industry is in the middle of a major upheaval. Many people have lost their jobs and some have taken their lives. Mint looks at the issue that is plaguing India’s diamond city and the reasons behind this crisis.
Surat, in Gujarat, processes 90% of all diamonds that are purchased across the world. It is home to over 6,000 units that cut and polish rough diamonds sourced from around the world. Over a million craftsmen and other workers are employed by the industry whose annual revenue is estimated at Rs1.6 trillion or more.
In 2022-23, India’s gem and jewellery exports totalled Rs1.76 trillion, with cut and polished diamonds accounting for 65% of that value. As the world embraces lab-grown diamonds, Gujarat’s second-largest city is moving fast to ensure that India plays a significant role here, as it did with natural diamonds. As many as nine people involved with the city’s diamond industry have committed suicide in recent weeks.
They were among 20,000 workers who have lost their jobs as the diamond industry is in the middle of a crisis caused by multiple factors. Other workers have seen their earnings fall by as much as 30% as diamond units cut back on working hours, cut down the number of days to five a week and sent staff on unpaid leave this summer, which lasted as long as a month for some. In addition, the enviable bonuses that workers in the diamond units were used to getting every Diwali are a distant memory now.
Firstly, demand has slowed. Consumers in the US and Europe facing higher interest costs are cutting back on spending. China’s economy is slowing down, too, and this has hurt consumer sentiments.
Read more on livemint.com
