Skilled Indian Diamond Polishers to be Trained to Work Abroad

(IDEX Online News) – The Surat Diamond Association (SDA) and the Gems and Jewellery Skill Council of India (GJSCI) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that will enable some 30,000 skilled diamond polishers to gain certification as “skilled diamond artisans.”

The certificate, which will be issued by the government of India will enable skilled diamond cutters and polishers from Surat to work abroad in higher paid jobs than are currently available locally, the Times of India has reported.

In Surat, diamond workers are paid between $10 per carat to $50 per carat. Workers in other countries can earn from $60 to $300 per carat, the newspaper reported.

The 30,000 workers to be certified in the first phase of the MoU will undergo training to bring them up to global standards.

Thanks to the Gems around 30,000 skilled diamond polishers would undergo written and theoretical exams for getting a valid certification as “skilled diamond artisan.” This certificate will be issued by Government of India (GOI) under the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).

SDA president Dinesh Navadia estimates that there are 450,000 workers in the Indian industry, of which some 30 percent are considered to be “skilled” artisans.

"Many artisans are working in the industry for the last 30 years, but they can't get jobs abroad due to want of certificates," reported the TOI.

"There is an underlying fear as well in the industry that skilled artisans may migrate to higher paying centers abroad. But the flip side is that most skilled artisans have almost completed their 30 to 40 years serving the industry and now there is no meaning for them to go looking for jobs abroad. It is a jackpot for the young artisans," analyst Aniruddha Lidbide told the paper.