There's a quiet irony at the heart of India's gold story. Every year, the country spends billions importing gold, shiploads of it, crossing oceans, adding to a high import bill. And yet, shelved inside almirahs and bank lockers across the country, Indian households store an estimated 25,000 tonnes of it. Roughly speaking, we are one of the largest gold-holding nations on earth, and we keep buying more, so the government, naturally, has taken note.

The Import Numbers, And Why They Matter

India's gold imports crossed $72.4 billion in FY26, up from $57.9 billion the year before, a jump of over 24% in a single year, according to SBI Research, and that's a record.