The All India Gems and Jewelery Trade Federation has been organizing a two-day nationwide shutdown since Saturday to protest against the government's budget proposal to raise by 2 percent basic customs duty on standard gold bars, gold coins and platinum.

"All jewelers and all associations across India have unanimously called for a total bandh(shutdown) of all jewelry establishments March 17, which may also extend to March 18 and 19 based on joint decisions as a mark of protest against the Budget," the jewelers body said in a release here on Sunday. "This is in protest against the imposition of excise duty proposed across the whole sector in the annual budget 2012. The industry has decided to represent to Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee the displeasure of the trade of the imposition of what they say was the control measures that actually killed the sector between 1962 and 1992," it added.

Indian jewelry makers criticized Mukherjee's proposal to increase basic customs duty on standard gold bars, gold coins and platinum, saying that it would adversely affect the country's gold jewelry industry as the prices of finished products would rise.