Gandhinagar, Jan 4 (IANS) In a drive to protect consumer interests and ensure transparency in trade, Gujarat's Legal Metrology Department conducted a statewide surprise inspection of nearly 370 gold and silver shops and jewellery showrooms on January 2 and 3. The operation led to 253 prosecution cases across 25 districts and the on-the-spot recovery of Rs 6.79 lakh as compounding fees, officials said.
The special enforcement campaign was carried out under the guidance of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, and led by Consumer Affairs Minister Raman Solanki and Minister of State P. C. Baranda.
The initiative forms part of the government’s ongoing efforts to safeguard consumers, curb unfair trade practices and ensure accurate weights and measures.
According to the Legal Metrology Department, inspections were conducted in Ahmedabad, Bharuch–Narmada, Junagadh–Gir Somnath, Bhavnagar–Botad, Surat, and several other districts, including Gandhinagar, Vadodara, Patan, Chhota Udepur, Tapi, Valsad, Dang, Navsari, Anand, Kheda, Panchmahal, Dahod, Mahisagar, Porbandar, Amreli, Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Surendranagar, Mehsana, Banaskantha–Palanpur, Sabarkantha–Himmatnagar, Aravalli–Modasa, Rajkot and Morbi.
Ahmedabad reported the highest enforcement action, with 22 cases registered after inspecting 61 establishments.
This was followed by Bharuch–Narmada (25 cases from 27 units), Junagadh–Gir Somnath (20 cases from 21 units), Bhavnagar–Botad (17 cases from 20 units) and Surat (14 cases from 20 units). Officials said violations included the use of unverified or unstamped weighing instruments, short-weight delivery, failure to carry out mandatory verification and stamping, keeping uncertified standard weights, and non-display of verification certificates.
All compounding fees were collected on-site through e-POS, UPI-based digital payments and cheques, the department confirmed. The jewellery sector drive is part of a broader enforcement framework under which the Legal Metrology Department recovered over Rs 18.77 lakh in compounding fees during the past year from various categories of traders for different violations. During Diwali 2025, inspections at 332 sweet, farsan, dry-fruit and gift shops resulted in 126 cases and Rs 5.91 lakh in penalties.
In July 2025, checks at 276 petrol and diesel pumps led to 19 cases and Rs 69,500 in compounding fees. A drive in May 2025 against fertiliser, seed, pesticide and farm equipment sellers covered 397 vendors, resulting in 210 cases and Rs 5.84 lakh recovered. The same month, inspections at 38 FCI and CWC godowns led to three cases and Rs 14,000 in penalties. Additionally, a February 2025 campaign targeting 419 highway hotels resulted in 169 cases and Rs 6.18 lakh in recoveries.
Officials said such regular enforcement and consumer awareness drives will continue across the state to ensure fair trade practices and protect consumer rights.
--IANS
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