BIS seizes fake hallmark gold in Davangere, urges app checks

A tiny stamp inside a band or pressed into a clasp can look reassuring until the numbers do not match. In Davangere, BIS officials seized more than 100 gold ornaments carrying fake BIS hallmark and HUID markings, a sharp reminder that the mark on the metal is only the start of the check.

India’s mandatory hallmarking system has been in force since 23 June 2021 in 256 districts that have at least one assaying and hallmarking centre, initially for 14, 18 and 22 carat gold jewellery and artefacts. BIS says the HUID, or Hallmark Unique Identification, is a six-digit alphanumeric number that is unique to each hallmarked item and traceable. The BIS Care app, which is free and available in 12 languages, includes a Verify HUID feature and a complaint option for misuse of BIS standard marks.

For a buyer weighing an estate ring, a vintage bracelet or a secondhand chain, that means the hallmark must be read like evidence, not decoration. Check whether the HUID is present, whether it matches the piece you are holding, and whether the jeweller’s registration details appear when the number is entered in the app. A clean-looking stamp without a verifiable HUID is a red flag, especially on older gold being resold as if it were newly certified. BIS says a hallmark on gold jewellery is valid for the lifetime of the piece, but old hallmarked jewellery sold again must be re-hallmarked under amendments dated 3 March 2023 and 31 March 2023.

The Davangere seizure also fits a wider enforcement pattern. In March 2025, BIS Mumbai Branch Office-II seized 251.390 grams of gold jewellery worth about 21 lakh in Thane for spurious hallmark symbols and no valid HUID. In May 2026, BIS seized gold jewellery worth 2.77 crore in Bengaluru for hallmarking violations. In Tamil Nadu, inspections between January 2023 and April 2025 covered 8,580 jewellery shops across 38 districts and led to the seizure of about 21.21 kg of fake-hallmark jewellery valued at 19.27 crore.

The penalty structure is serious: under the BIS Act, 2016, legal action can bring up to one year in prison, a fine of at least 1 lakh, or a fine up to five times the value of the seized goods, or both. If a hallmarked precious-metal article is later found below declared purity, BIS Rules, 2018 provide compensation of two times the purity shortfall plus testing charges. For collectors and estate buyers, the lesson is plain: trust the metal, but verify the paperwork, the HUID and the history before paying a premium.