India's lab-grown diamond market — pegged at USD 2.8 billion in 2025 and projected to hit USD 11.6 billion by 2035 — is drawing billion-rupee investments and cabinet-level attention as Surat builds its claim to the world's most complete LGD value chain.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah called for building a complete end-to-end Lab-Grown Diamond (LGD) value chain in India — a clear, high-level policy signal for this fast-growing sector.
India’s LGD market, estimated at USD 2.8 billion in 2025, is projected to reach USD 11.6 billion by 2035, growing at a compounded annual rate of approximately 15%.
Surat currently processes an estimated 90% of the world’s diamonds, positioning India as the natural backbone of global diamond manufacturing and export.
The government has already acted — removing import duties on LGD seeds and awarding IIT Madras an INR 242 crore research grant to develop indigenous technology and seed manufacturing.
The GJEPC has projected that with Production-Linked Incentive support, India could process up to 150 million carats annually and generate revenue of INR 400 billion.
Leading the charge is Dholakia Lab Grown Diamond — the jewellery arm of Surat’s Hari Krishna Group — which raised over INR 800 crore in April 2026, in one of the sector’s largest growth-stage investments.
The funds will expand production capacity, build a pan-India direct-to-consumer retail network, and invest in precision single-crystal diamonds for semiconductor and defence applications.
Limelight Diamonds raised INR 275 crore to strengthen vertical integration, with aggressive plans to scale to 200 stores by 2027 across metro, Tier I, and Tier II markets.
Aukera, the premium LGD brand with actor Taapsee Pannu as ambassador, raised INR 90 crore in July 2026, growing from 13 to 35 stores across major Indian cities.
Other key players — Fiona Diamonds, Jewelbox, GIVA, and Solitario — are collectively deepening consumer access to LGD jewellery across both online and offline retail.
Consumer scepticism around value retention and certification standards remains a challenge, even as significantly lower prices draw younger, value-conscious shoppers towards lab-grown options.
With policy intent, investor momentum, and a world-class manufacturing base converging in Surat, India is well-positioned to define the global lab-grown diamond industry’s next decade.
Editor’s Note
The natural-versus-lab-grown debate largely misses the point.
These are two fundamentally distinct consumer markets — one rooted in heritage and rarity, the other in access and technology.
Carbon-based diamonds, however grown, carry an emotional permanence that no trend disrupts. What LGDs change is the address: diamonds are no longer only for the few.
India’s real opportunity is not in choosing sides. It is in owning the complete story — from seed to showcase, from Surat to Singapore — exactly the value chain Amit Shah envisions.
The future of diamonds is not either/or. It is both — and India is uniquely placed to lead both.
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