In the middle of nowhere, in the dusty terrains of Navi Mumbai, the jewellery fraternity yesterday witnessed the foundation of what could possibly give a boost to not just Maharashtra’s economic welfare but the entire nation’s GDP. At the foundation stone-laying ceremony of India Jewellery Park, the brethren of the jewellery industry witnessed the presence of Devendra Fadnavis, CM, Maharashtra and Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Commerce and Civil Aviation, both of whom were extremely pivotal in initiating this multi-crore project in record speed. “This jewellery park is a historic initiative. I have to immensely thank Fadnavis for allocating us this land in record time. This park will create Rs 40,000 cr turnover and 1 lakh jobs and Rs 14 cr will be invested in building this park,” said Pramod Agrawal, Chairman, GJEPC. As he was praising their incredible support to the jewellery industry, Agrawal also requested the Union Minister to consider reducing the 10 per cent duty on gold and bring back the duty on diamonds to 2.5 per cent. Suresh Prabhu focused on the profound relationship this country has with gold with a limerick. “15 lakh people are currently working in this sector and with this jewellery park there will be a greater contribution to the economy from gems and jewellery. We are working on a strategy to bring in more diamonds into the country. More diamonds means the creation of more jobs, which in turn is good for the industry and economy. We are in talks with the delegates of Russia as to how we can import more diamond roughs from the country,” said Prabhu. He said over the course of a few days he has been in talks with PMs and delegates of 184 countries asking them to be a part of this brand new jewellery park and that the industry will hit the $75 billion target by 2025. The gems and jewellery industry, with the completion of this jewellery park is expected to give an economic boost to the state of Maharashtra. “I expect Maharashtra to be a trillion dollar economy by 2025 and this sector will be a major contributor for the same. The park will have a single-window system for permissions,” Fadnavis said. The jewellery park will also have a state of the art gems and jewellery university. “We will provide whatever support from our end to make this gems and jewellery university a reality,” added Fadnavis. The costs at the jewellery park will be very affordable and subsidised and is expected to house around 5000 units of 150 sq-ft each. A highly modern common facility centre will be developed so that even the medium and small manufacturers from different quarters can benefit from the same. The property rates at the park are yet to be decided but will be affordable according to the dignitaries of the GJEPC. The jewellery park is expected to be a comprehensive jewellery ambit for the industry with training centers for artisans and low-cost housing within a gated community. The council doesn’t have clarity on the time frame to complete the project as they have not yet decided on the architects.