The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is scaling up its testing infrastructure for silver as consumer demand rises amid high gold prices. With hallmarking volume jumping to 5.9 million articles, the agency is deploying new technology to enhance transparency. This expansion aims to build consumer trust in the silver market, similar to the standards established for gold.
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is significantly increasing its laboratory infrastructure to handle a surge in silver hallmarking requests. This move is a direct response to shifting consumer behaviour, as high gold prices have led many buyers to choose silver jewellery and articles. The BIS aims to handle the rising volume internally over the next two years and is planning a nationwide expansion of its referral and assay laboratories to support this trend.
The scale of this growth is evident in official data, which shows silver article hallmarking reaching 5.9 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year, a sharp rise from 3.2 million the previous year. To accommodate this, the BIS currently utilizes a network of approximately 230 recognized Assaying and Hallmarking Centres specifically for silver. As the regulator looks to formalize this market, it is focusing on infrastructure that can manage high volumes without compromising on testing quality.
To keep up with the demand and improve accuracy, the BIS is piloting advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence and robotics. The agency is testing robotic arms for laboratory tasks and has linked test equipment directly to its Lab Information Management System (LIMS) for automated data capture. These steps, combined with CCTV monitoring, are designed to make the testing process more transparent and efficient, reducing the time taken to certify silver purity.
Market trust is also being supported by the introduction of the Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number for silver articles, which began in September 2025. This allows consumers to verify the quality of their silver purchases, much like they do for gold. While silver hallmarking is currently voluntary, these measures reflect a broader push by the regulator to increase standardisation in the jewellery sector.
However, the expansion faces operational challenges. Many of the existing testing centres were originally designed for gold and face bottlenecks when handling the higher volume of silver pieces. Furthermore, the system relies on a combination of government-run and private empanelled labs, which creates a need for consistent oversight to maintain trust. Businesses operating in this space must also ensure compliance, as products that fail to meet testing standards can be subject to regulatory action or market removal.
Investors and market observers will likely monitor how effectively the BIS can scale these testing centres in the coming months. The next important update will be the progress on infrastructure expansion and whether the regulator takes further steps toward making hallmarking mandatory for silver, which would have a significant impact on retail jewellery compliance and consumer confidence.