Smt Nirmala Sitharaman, Hon’ble Minister of State for Commerce & Industry (Independent Charge), Government of India will be the Chief Guest at the formal inauguration of the India Diamond Trading Centre (IDTC), the country’s first Special Notified Zone for trading in rough diamonds. The inauguration will take place on Sunday, December 20, 2015.

The Guest of Honour at the inauguration will be Shri Subhash Desai, Hon’ble Minister of Industries, Ports, Employment & Self Employment, Government of Maharashtra, while Jean-Marc Lieberherr, Managing Director, Rio Tinto; Andrey Polyakov, Vice President, Alrosa and Marcus Lung, Senior Sales Manager (Asia Pacific), De Beers will be Special Guests.

The opening of the IDTC, being set up jointly by The Gem & Jewellery Export Council (GJEPC) and Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB), marks a significant new step for the Indian diamond industry.

Over the last month, all three major miners – Rio Tinto, De Beers and Alrosa – have had test viewings of goods held at the IDTC. Booking of viewing slots for 2016 is also in progress with most of the key dates up to June already reserved by different companies.

In a note accompanying the announcment of the inauguration, GJEPC-BDB have said that the opening of the IDTC will be beneficial to the Indian industry, especially the small and medium sized players. It is expected that India’s share of global rough by volume will now move from 85% to about 90-92%, while in value terms it is expected to rise from 75% to 80%. Direct access to rough diamonds for small or medium sized companies will also ensure wider participation in imports, rather than consolidation.