Ongoing sanctions against Russian miner Alrosa, coupled with “demand from the US for cheaper goods amid spiraling inflation” are the driving factors for the fact that lab-grown diamonds now account for around 20% of the diamonds used by manufacturers in India, according to reports quoted by IDEX Online.
President of the Diamond Workers’ Union in Gujarat, Ramesh Zilariya, told the news website ET Now Digital: “Some of the units that are into natural diamond cutting and polishing have converted 20-30 per cent of their production into lab-grown diamonds. This is generating jobs for the diamond workers in Surat.”
According to the report, about 250,000 employees who were laid off last month “have been able to return to work.”
Colin Shah, chairman of GJEPC (Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council) said: “Natural diamond and lab-grown diamonds are two different types, and they cannot replace each other.”
