 "Surat decided, diamond hub turns to Navasari, Bardoli for poll glitter")
The diamond industry is not looking for anything from the Lok Sabha elections, says Savji Dhanji Dholakia, 62, when asked about his expectations from the next government. The diamond business that he started with his brothers more than 40 years ago is among the most well-known not just in Surat, the diamond capital of India, but in many overseas markets.
Spread across acres of land complete with a helipad, the Ichhapore campus of Hari Krishna Exports, which manufactures and exports diamonds, is tough to cover walking. Golf carts are lined up to ferry employees and visitors (as in this case). A large photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating the facility in 2017 occupies the main reception wall. Planning, cutting, and polishing the rough diamond are distinct units for producing a finished gem. Advanced tech machines, mostly imported from the West, have changed the game in this niche industry. “You can set the machine for a task and get on with other things,” explains the guide pointing at a laser machine to cut diamonds and then to a water jet. Even so, diamond engineers and polish artists, sitting in neat rows in large halls, are most in demand here.
Dholakia, a Padma Shri recipient in 2022, is more focused on philanthropy now, while the next generation is concentrating on the business which employs around 6,000.
The ‘hira hub’ at Ichhapore, which has many other players besides Hari Krishna in the tree-lined boulevard on the outskirts of Surat, is not to be confused with the more recent Diamond Bourse at Khajod, Surat. The bourse is yet to see glitter, as an industry insider put it.
People of Surat, which has a winner in the BJP’s Mukesh Dalal ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, have turned to Navasari and Bardoli, the two adjoining constituencies and considered part of Surat, for their election interests.
Whatever the local contest in Gujarat, Dholakia is “110 per cent sure’’ that Modi will be back as PM. Dholakia’s company exports a majority of its diamonds, mainly to the United States. While he dismisses any major challenge posed by lab-grown diamonds, Dholakia admits that for two years, exports to China have stopped. That’s more to do with declining demand in China than any geopolitical reasons, he indicates. Russia-Ukraine war has dented the business, Dholakia says. Russia used to be the main source of raw diamond, but not anymore. Hari Krishna, like many others, has turned to South Africa for raw material. “But we should take the ups and downs in business in our stride,’’ he says laughing, and adds that “diamond demand will be there as long as people have money’’.
Are there any targets that he has set for the business? “The opportunities are huge. We have reached only 100 countries in 45 years of being in the diamond business. We want to reach at least 125 this year.’’
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According to industry and government data, the US accounts for almost 50 per cent of the total diamond exports from India. During the first nine months of 2023-24, India’s total exports of cut and polished diamonds were around Rs 98,638 crore against Rs 1.32 trillion a year ago.
Why is women participation so low in the diamond industry? “That’s about the mindset. Women in Gujarat are not keen to enter this business for some reason,’’ Dholakia replies.
Coming back to elections, doesn’t the diamond industry want anything at all from the government? “Neither is there any support from the government nor is there any demand. The diamond industry has not been disturbed by the government, so it’s okay,’’ Dholakia points out.
But not everyone in the diamond industry is without expectations. For instance, Dinesh Navadia, chairman of the Indian Diamond Institute, lists out three demands for the next government. First, the government should permit overseas miners to sell products in India. The government norms can be set on the pattern followed by European countries and Dubai, he suggests. Also, he presses for an average turnover tax. Finally, the government must keep its word on relaxing the tax imposed on businesses for the online sale of diamond.