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Vasant Mehta, a Dedicated Diamond Industry Leader, Dies at 81
Mehta led India’s GJEPC through the 2008 financial crisis and was respected worldwide for his wisdom, integrity, and knowledge.
Vasant Mehta, former chairman of the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council and founder of M/s V. Rameshchandra & Co., has died at age 81. (Photo courtesy of CIBJO)
Mumbai, India—Vasant Mehta, a second-generation diamantaire who served as both chairman and vice chairman of India’s Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council, has died.
He was 81.
GJEPC said Mehta’s wisdom, commitment, integrity, and deep understanding of the diamond industry made him a respected figure, not just in India but also worldwide.
“His sudden demise is an immense loss to the fraternity,” the organization said. “GJEPC extends its heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.”
Born in 1945, Mehta graduated from the University of Calcutta and moved to Mumbai in 1966 to work in what was then an emerging industry in India: diamond cutting.
Mehta was a second-generation diamantaire whose family’s involvement in the diamond industry dates to the early 20th century.
He founded and served as senior partner of M/s V. Rameshchandra & Co., a Mumbai-based diamond and gemstone trading company.
The GJEPC said Mehta dedicated decades of his life to the growth and development of the diamond industry through his time with the council in India and on the international stage.
He served two terms as GJEPC vice chairman (1991-1992 and 2006-2008) and was elected chairman in October 2008.
Mehta led GJEPC through the 2008 financial crisis, taking the diamond industry’s banking and liquidity concerns to government officials and India's banks.
In 2011, India’s Ministry of Commerce appointed him to serve as a part-time director on the board of the government-owned Export Credit Guarantee Corp.
Mehta also represented GJEPC at meetings of international industry organizations, including the World Diamond Council, World Federation of Diamond Bourses, International Diamond Manufacturers Association, the Kimberley Process (KP), and CIBJO.
He served as the vice president of IDMA and had an “active role” in the creation of the KP in the early 2000s.
In a message shared on Monday, CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri called Mehta a good friend and a valued associate.
“While a prominent businessman in his own right, he was first and foremost a servant of the industry, in India of course, but globally as well, where in his quiet and dignified manner he devoted much of his time working to the benefit of us all,” Cavalieri said.
“Our condolences go out to his family and to our colleagues in India.”
He was 81.
GJEPC said Mehta’s wisdom, commitment, integrity, and deep understanding of the diamond industry made him a respected figure, not just in India but also worldwide.
“His sudden demise is an immense loss to the fraternity,” the organization said. “GJEPC extends its heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.”
Born in 1945, Mehta graduated from the University of Calcutta and moved to Mumbai in 1966 to work in what was then an emerging industry in India: diamond cutting.
Mehta was a second-generation diamantaire whose family’s involvement in the diamond industry dates to the early 20th century.
He founded and served as senior partner of M/s V. Rameshchandra & Co., a Mumbai-based diamond and gemstone trading company.
The GJEPC said Mehta dedicated decades of his life to the growth and development of the diamond industry through his time with the council in India and on the international stage.
He served two terms as GJEPC vice chairman (1991-1992 and 2006-2008) and was elected chairman in October 2008.
Mehta led GJEPC through the 2008 financial crisis, taking the diamond industry’s banking and liquidity concerns to government officials and India's banks.
In 2011, India’s Ministry of Commerce appointed him to serve as a part-time director on the board of the government-owned Export Credit Guarantee Corp.
Mehta also represented GJEPC at meetings of international industry organizations, including the World Diamond Council, World Federation of Diamond Bourses, International Diamond Manufacturers Association, the Kimberley Process (KP), and CIBJO.
He served as the vice president of IDMA and had an “active role” in the creation of the KP in the early 2000s.
In a message shared on Monday, CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri called Mehta a good friend and a valued associate.
“While a prominent businessman in his own right, he was first and foremost a servant of the industry, in India of course, but globally as well, where in his quiet and dignified manner he devoted much of his time working to the benefit of us all,” Cavalieri said.
“Our condolences go out to his family and to our colleagues in India.”
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