Binu Alex, Commodity Online
Part I of Diamond Series
SURAT: From Port City to Plague City to KhoobSurat! Gujarat’s diamond-studded city of Surat has come a long way. In its journey from a 16th century seaport to the present day beautiful city of flyovers, Surat has seen several ups and downs. But one thing never changed all through these years — wealth.
Right from beginning Surat was popularly viewed as the city of Kubera, God of wealth. It remains so now also. At present, Surat’s GDP is 16.5%, highest in India. Diamond and textile merchants created all the wealth for Surat and they have been the pillars of strength for the city for centuries.
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In 1664 Shivaji invaded Surat, an important and wealthy Mughal trading city, and looted it to replenish his now depleted treasury and also as a revenge for the capture and looting of Maratha territory by Shaista Khan. Seven years before this, Shaista Khan’s emperor Aurangzeb attacked Golconda and Bijapur – again diamond depositories.
So these places are not only bonded by the Mughal rule but also by precious diamonds. If Shivaji was to decide on a place to loot today, he would have chosen Surat again.
In 1994 when plague brought bad name to Surat, the cash-rich civic body launched a cleanliness drive and made the city one of the most beautiful places in the country.
However, there is a pall of gloom in Surat’s diamond markets now. The global market meltdown has put the internationally flourishing diamond industry in a spot. The main diamond consumer, United States, is struggling to buy bread and butter and diamonds are now beyond their reach. Not that they have lost interest but there is just no credit available, especially for non-essential items.
Check out the exciting coverage on Diamonds in Commodity Online here!
Trading in the diamond market has slowed down significantly due to the liquidity crunch and this is the reason why World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) has appealed to diamond mining companies to reduce quota of rough diamonds they supply to the industry for marketing worldwide.
According to WFDB, during economic uncertainty, stability of the world diamond industry is of vital importance to the world economy and to the international banking system.
The effect of economic crisis has also percolated down to Surat where the most important journey of diamond begins. Diamond processing units have declared an unprecedented 45-day Diwali holiday this year, thanks to Lehman Brothers.
“Yes, it’s true. The demand for diamonds has come down considerably. And, the availability of roughs has also put many in a spot,” said Surat Diamond Association president C P Vanani.
Watch tomorrow for the second part of the series on diamonds!
