Figure 1: Indian researcher monitors lab-grown diamond CVD reactor controls at a technology facility. [AI Generated]
The situation
If you operated a traditional diamond cutting and polishing unit in Surat, Gujarat prior to 2023, you faced severe structural headwinds due to fluctuating rough natural diamond supply and rising input costs (GJEPC Portal). Polishing units needed a viable alternative to stay profitable and utilize their existing workforce. The emerging market for Lab-Grown Diamonds (LGDs) offered a massive growth path, but local firms lacked the high-tech Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) recipes and machinery to grow diamonds indigenously (PIB Release).
What they did
To navigate this technological barrier, Surat's manufacturing units partnered with the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) to adopt LGD technologies (GJEPC Portal).
- Policy Adaptation (February 2023): Following the Union Budget 2023-24 announcement, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry approved a research grant of ₹242.96 crore over five years to IIT Madras to establish the India Centre for Lab-Grown Diamond (InCent-LGD) (PIB Release). This centre focused on developing local CVD recipes and machinery, offering them to local manufacturing units to reduce import dependencies on foreign seeds and equipment (PIB Release).
- Workforce Retraining (Mid-2023): Surat's traditional units retrained their cutting and polishing artisans to operate CVD laser saws and high-pressure setups (GJEPC Portal).
- Sandbox Testing (Late 2023): Local manufacturers registered with GJEPC to access indigenized technology blueprints and setup CVD reactors in Surat's industrial clusters (GJEPC Portal).
What happened
Surat's diamond polishing units successfully converted LGD production into a major industrial success:
- Production Growth: Nearly 90% of polishing units in Surat incorporated LGD lines alongside natural diamonds (GJEPC Portal).
- Export Volume Milestone: Lab-grown diamonds grew to represent nearly half of Surat's polished diamond export volume (GJEPC Portal).
- Cost Reduction: Retraining existing diamond cutting artisans kept capital transitions low, allowing local CVD units to produce diamonds at 70% to 80% lower cost than natural diamond mining operations (GJEPC Portal).
- Technology Indigenization: By leveraging the InCent-LGD research output from IIT Madras, local manufacturers successfully reduced their reliance on imported microwave plasma CVD reactors (PIB Release).
Figure 2: How Surat's Diamond Cutters Transitioned to Lab-Grown Technology funding, eligibility, and process milestone roadmap. [AI Generated]
Why it went that way
This successful transition was driven by two key factors:
- Leveraging Pre-existing Skills: Surat did not need to build a polishing ecosystem from scratch. The existing skills of natural diamond polishers were easily retrained for LGD cutting and polishing, keeping labor costs low (GJEPC Portal).
- Targeted Research Support: The ₹242.96 crore government grant to IIT Madras resolved the critical technology gap, providing local diamond producers with indigenized hardware specifications (PIB Release).
What a reader should do differently
If you operate a traditional manufacturing or processing unit and want to transition to advanced technology segments, apply these lessons:
- Retrain existing workers: Do not lay off your skilled workforce during an industry pivot. Retrain your artisans on next-generation machinery to preserve domain expertise (GJEPC Portal).
- Collaborate with national labs: Partner with academic initiatives like InCent-LGD to source indigenized CVD technology and avoid expensive import costs on hardware (PIB Release).
- Leverage export councils: Work closely with bodies like GJEPC to secure separate customs HSN codes and join Buyer Seller Meets to connect with global buyers (GJEPC Portal).
Relevant schemes
Explore these complementary initiatives to support your business transition:
- Learn about registration prerequisites on our Udyam Registration scheme page.
- Discover how to leverage national manufacturing incentives on the Make in India scheme page.