India’s Diamond City is reeling from the war in Ukraine

If you’ve ever bought a diamond, there’s a good chance it once passed through the streets of Surat, in western India, where 90% of the world’s diamonds are processed. India imports rough diamonds from countries like Russia, Canada and Botswana, and artisans in Surat’s factories painstakingly cut and polish them before they’re sold all over the world.

But sanctions against Russian diamonds have disrupted the supply chain, leaving workers in Surat without work. It’s also becoming increasingly difficult to find buyers for Russian-origin diamonds. Fresh sanctions that went into effect recently target Russian-origin diamonds even if they are cut or polished in another country. Additionally, demand from key diamond markets like the United States and China has been plummeting, putting Surat’s diamond industry in an unprecedented slump.

Check out this a photo gallery by reporter Sushmita Pathak of diamond workers in Surat.

In workshops across Surat, artisans sit hunched over polishing wheels, making minuscule cuts on tiny glittering diamonds. But dozens of units have shuttered in the past few months as the supply of rough diamonds from Russia has dwindled.

Surat city is a major diamond processing hub, but the war in Ukraine has dimmed its shine.

The current slump in Surat’s diamond industry is the worst and the longest in its history, according to Dinesh Navadiya, the former regional head of India’s Gems and Jewelry Export Promotion Council. Low demand from key diamond markets, like the United States and China, and supply chain disruptions due to sanctions on Russian diamonds are to blame.

Former diamond worker Venubhai Parmar and his wife have been borrowing money to feed their family of four after Parmar lost his job a few months ago. “I am in total depression,” he said, “I keep thinking, ‘what should I do, what should I do?’”

The three-year slump in Surat’s diamond industry worsened in the past year as G7 countries imposed tougher sanctions against Russian diamonds.

Russia is a major source of rough diamonds and 90% of the world’s diamonds are processed in Surat.

Bhavesh Tank, vice president of the Surat Diamond Workers Union, said he’s heard countless stories of workers being laid off without notice and has started organizing relief packages for those affected.

These days, the mood in India’s diamond city is lackluster due to the effects of the war in Ukraine, which is thousands of miles away.

The job losses, lack of government support and limited prospects have even led to some workers in the diamond industry taking their own lives.

India’s diamond export fell nearly 28% in the 2023-24 financial year, with a significant decline from the United States, China and the United Arab Emirates, its top three customers.