India officially banned the import of gold jewellery from Thailand on Thursday, the department of commerce announced in New Delhi.
The announcement of the ban by the Business Standard newspaper carried few details.
It is known that the Indian government and gold importers have expressed concern for several months that smuggled gold was showing up in India from Thailand.
Thursday's announcement said all imports of gold jewellery from Thailand would be banned "until the certificates of origin issued by Thailand are verified to our satisfaction."
This indicated that imports into India are using fake or forged certificates.
Legitimate gold imports must have at least 20% of the value added in Thailand, typically by artisans who make jewellery from gold bullion. In recent months, gold was found in India that had little or no extra work before it was exported from Thailand.