A recent news item caught my attention. It says that India is the largest importer of gold - mostly used for jewellery. The most amazing news item was that after crude oil, gold is the largest material imported by Indians. Wow! That is something. Gold imported in 2012 by India is a staggering 25% of the total gold mined in the world, and the value of the import - (hold your breath) - $60 billion in fiscal 2012, just 50% higher than the $40 billion in fiscal 2011. I do not know the import duty on gold, but it is not high - at least not high enough to restrict consumption. The fear that if the government raises the import duty, there will be large scale smuggling is the major worry - given the laxity of officials in various areas of government!
Be that as it may, I have often wondered what makes buying gold so attractive. Is it the lustre, is it its lasting value, is it the very fact that it is almost indestructible, is it because it can be used to pledge and collect almost the entire value as loan? What is its allure? Maybe a combination of all of the above. Does wearing gold increase one's beauty? I believe in the opposite.
It is said that gold is one metal that cannot be "lost". We can always get back the gold through physical or chemical means. India has also been one of the first countries in the world to realize its value and use it for jewellery making since 2500 BC or thereabouts. A very long history.
But is it really required for a regular middle class person to invest in gold for his/her daughter's marriage? To borrow money and buy jewellery and give to the daughter for her to take away? What is the reason why we are so attracted to gold? Many rituals place a requirement for the person (groom or bride) to wear jewellery made of gold. That was when it was affordable. Is it affordable now? Then why do we insist on following the same ritual even when we know that we have to borrow, sometimes beyond our means, to artificially beautify ourselves? I don't understand the logic.
I stopped wearing jewellery a few decades ago. I didn't take any jewellery during my marriage - much to the chagrin of my in-laws inviting possibly some comments like "probably there is something wrong with this fellow that he doesn't even want a ring". My parents too tried to force me to agree at least to one ring or one chain. I refused. No regrets.
What if everyone stops getting attracted to gold? What if the metal stops being such an alluring possession? Imagine the grief of the miners, the jewellers, the goldsmiths, and the entire industry dependent on the allure of the masses. They will come to grief.
How I wish I had a magic wand to make this love for gold vanish!
Be that as it may, I have often wondered what makes buying gold so attractive. Is it the lustre, is it its lasting value, is it the very fact that it is almost indestructible, is it because it can be used to pledge and collect almost the entire value as loan? What is its allure? Maybe a combination of all of the above. Does wearing gold increase one's beauty? I believe in the opposite.
It is said that gold is one metal that cannot be "lost". We can always get back the gold through physical or chemical means. India has also been one of the first countries in the world to realize its value and use it for jewellery making since 2500 BC or thereabouts. A very long history.
But is it really required for a regular middle class person to invest in gold for his/her daughter's marriage? To borrow money and buy jewellery and give to the daughter for her to take away? What is the reason why we are so attracted to gold? Many rituals place a requirement for the person (groom or bride) to wear jewellery made of gold. That was when it was affordable. Is it affordable now? Then why do we insist on following the same ritual even when we know that we have to borrow, sometimes beyond our means, to artificially beautify ourselves? I don't understand the logic.
I stopped wearing jewellery a few decades ago. I didn't take any jewellery during my marriage - much to the chagrin of my in-laws inviting possibly some comments like "probably there is something wrong with this fellow that he doesn't even want a ring". My parents too tried to force me to agree at least to one ring or one chain. I refused. No regrets.
What if everyone stops getting attracted to gold? What if the metal stops being such an alluring possession? Imagine the grief of the miners, the jewellers, the goldsmiths, and the entire industry dependent on the allure of the masses. They will come to grief.
How I wish I had a magic wand to make this love for gold vanish!
The import duty is 4 % and it is likely to be increased by 2 % by our friend chidambaram. I recently read an article about this.
ReplyDeleteYou are right. the allure of gold is unimaginable. And except for the few ladies whom i know who want to show off wearing different jewellery for different occasions ( matching their sarees etc.,) , most of the gold of women lies in the dark confines of Bank Lockers and then there is a still a mad rush to acquire more and more of gold.
keep looking for that magic wand.
Rajaraman
Interesting thought, Uncle Raj! But I believe that will initiate a mass exodus/migration from the God's Own Country. The economy will take a hit which will magnify eventually.
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