The Indian government has extended its deadline for jewellers to register with the central excise department. The deadline has been further extended from July 1, to July 31, 2016, reports say.

In the budget this year, the Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had announced imposing 1 percent excise duty on non-silver jewellery; a mandate widely protested by jewellers across the country, reports add.

The excise duty payment liability begins from March 1, 2016. As such the jewellers can pay the duties pertaining from March to May and payment of excise due for June, by July 31, 2016, reports add.