As part of the Union Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced several initiatives for the lab grown diamond industry. R&D grants will be provided to one of the IITs to encourage indigenous production of lab grown diamonds and reduce import dependency. Further, the government has also reduced the customs duty on lab grown diamond seeds to bring down the cost of production and encourage expansion of lab grown diamond growing and production.
“Lab grown diamonds is a technology and innovation driven emerging sector with high employment potential,” says FM Nirmala Sitharaman. “With the depletion of deposits of natural diamonds, the industry is moving towards lab grown diamonds and it holds huge promise,” added the Finance Minister.
Lab grown diamonds are eco-friendly diamonds that are absolutely real, but at the same time planet friendly because they are not mined but instead grown above in labs in exactly the same way. A thin layer of a natural diamond is placed in the plasma reactor and the exact environment is replicated in the reactor for the diamond to grow. Gases are infused and slowly carbon from the gases under high temperature and pressure separates and forms layers on the natural diamond seed. Exactly the same way as found below the earth. The result is a rough CVD diamond that bears the exact same properties as a mined diamond. This process is known as the CVD technology and is a completely home grown technology. This is similar to the concept of test tube babies and natural born babies where the development process is different but the output is exactly the same.
The gems and jewellery sector is thrilled to receive such recognition for lab grown diamonds and appreciates this move by the government.
Pooja Sheth Madhavan, Founder of Limelight Lab Grown Diamonds, India’s largest LGD jewellery brand says, “The government for the first time has spoken of the identity of lab grown diamonds by addressing them as (NOT ARTIFICIAL OR SYNTHETIC) but eco-friendly and bearing the same properties as natural diamonds.
This awareness created by the government in itself is going to instill huge amount of consumer confidence in lab grown diamonds and we will be seeing a huge shift in consumer preference towards LGDs in India. A huge number of retail players in India are already stocking & entering into lab grown diamonds and this will only strengthen the confidence to stock LGDs at the retail level.
This will come despite the budget announcement of reduction in import duties on seeds as its impact on the pricing of the product is minimal and a boost in demand will likely push retail prices higher. Mainly because India today has less than 10,000 growing machines and the consumption capacity of India can far outpace the current supply of LGDs. Less than 5% of Indian women wear and adorn diamonds. Lab grown diamonds will be an opportunity for even the remaining 95% of women to wear and afford diamonds. As a result, both these measures announced in the budget are only likely to further solidify and grow the entire value chain in the LGD sector and more LGDs will now be available at the retail level.”
Bakul Bhai Limbasiya, Owner, Bhathwari Technologies, leading grower and producer of lab grown CVD diamonds says, “Presently lab grown diamonds is growing at a large scale in Surat. For which research is very necessary. R&D development will help grow the industry at a rapid pace. Now there is definitely no looking back for the LGD sector in India. And we are poised to establish India as a global hub in lab grown diamonds through the CVD technology and offer the purest type of diamonds.”
Started in 2019, Limelight Lab Grown Diamonds Ltd has been India’s leading sustainable diamond luxury brand offering lab-grown CVD diamond-studded jewellery. Headquartered in Mumbai, Limelight has been able to spread its wings in India with a network of over 65+ partners in cities like Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi, Surat, Mumbai, etc. Backed by the world’s largest lab-grown diamond production unit that boasts of production of over 5 million carats each year, we come with the strength of a wide range of jewellery for our customers.
Recently recognised by Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal at India’s largest jewellery trade show in Bangalore, Limelight was shortlisted to understand the potential of lab grown diamond jewellery in India. Limelight has also been awarded the ET (Economic Times) Business Icon Award 2020 for Technology Leaders in Sustainable Diamond Creation, and strongly advocates sustainable and conscious living that can maintain the diamond legacy yet preserve the planet for a brighter future. As the leading sustainable brand in India, Limelight has been at the forefront of showcasing lab-grown CVD diamond-studded jewellery from India to the world.
Limelight has not only been successful in attracting consumers and the trade but also most recently received great support from several of the Royal Families in India that have been inheritors of some of the most precious diamond jewellery in the past.
Visit www.limelightdiamonds.com to know more about lab grown diamonds.
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