G7 Ban: Surat Diamond Workers to Protest ‘Downturn’ Ahead of PM Modi’s Visit

The Diamond Workers Union of Gujarat (DWUG), an association claiming to represent the interests of around 2.5 million blue-collar workers in Surat, has threatened a major demonstration in the city on Saturday, the union’s president Rameshbhai Zilriya told Sputnik India on Friday.

“Around a million workers are being denied minimum wages due to the current downturn. Many workers have had to cope with salary cuts due to lack of work,” Zilriya said.

Bhaveshbhai Tank, the vice-president of the union, told Sputnik India that the workers will go to the protest ignoring the lack of permission by the police.

"We demanded permission for a demonstration in the interest of nearly 1 million of our diamond unit workers who have been affected by the downturn in the industry,” Tank stated.

This week, the diamond unit workers handed over a memorandum to the Surat district collector (DC), demanding an economic relief package.

The memorandum, seen by Sputnik India, threatens of a “major demonstration” if the demands weren't met.

The protest would take place one day ahead of the reported visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the formal inauguration of the Surat Diamond Bourse, touted as the world’s biggest office space, on Sunday.

What's the Reason for Downturn in India?

The diamond workers are clear that the curbs on Russian-origin diamond imports by the US are the primary reason behind the “recession-like” conditions in Surat, a trading hub where 90 percent of the world's rough diamonds are cut and polished.

In a meeting with the G7 delegation which visited Surat in September, India asked the rich nations to lift the curbs on Russian diamond imports.

In 2021, the US has traditionally accounted for 50 percent of cut and polished diamond exports from India, which sourced around 30 percent of its rough diamonds from Russian mining giant Alrosa.

US President Joe Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) this March banning the import of Russian diamonds, creating a downturn and making local Indian traders wary.

However, Biden’s EO failed to curb Russian diamond imports to India, as India’s diamond imports from Russia hit a five year-high in August.

Zilriya, who works with both rough and lab-grown diamonds, said that the Russian rough diamonds were still available in the Surat industry.

"There hasn't been much of a difference there," he said.

Meanwhile, a “voluntary freeze” on the import of rough diamonds, which kicked in October, ended on Friday.

The two-month freeze was imposed due to excess supply of rough diamonds to India and to stabilise the supply and demand dynamics.

According to statistics released by India’s peak industry body Gems and Jewellery Export and Promotion Council (GJEPC), the voluntary import freeze led to imports declining by 69 percent in November, as compared to the previous month.

Incidentally, the Indian industry freeze was announced around a week after Alrosa said that it would cease the sale of rough diamonds for September and October to "reverse the existing trend of diminishing demand", according to a company statement.

‘G7 Ban Will Threaten Indian Exports’

This month, the G7 announced “import restrictions” on diamonds mined, processed or produced in Russia by 1 January, 2024. The western nations’ club also warned of “phased restrictions” on Russian-origin diamonds processed in third countries from 1 March.

Meanwhile, the GJEPC has expressed displeasure over the “timeline” of the G7 ban and sought the intervention of the Indian government in the matter.

Business & Economy

G7 Ban on Russian Diamonds Puts India & US on Opposite Ends

8 December 2023, 17:50

(PS: Rameshbhai Zilriya has been taken into police custody ahead of the planned diamond workers' protest on Saturday morning, his associates told Sputnik India on Friday evening).