India, May 15 -- A fter Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged citizens to avoid buying gold, the Centre on Wednesday raised customs duty on gold and silver from 6% to 15% to curb imports and conserve foreign exchange amid the ongoing US-Iran crisis. The move has now pushed many Mumbai families and soon-to-be brides towards repurposing heirloom jewellery instead of investing in new gold. "The jewellery which has been in our family for generations will now have to be repurposed, seeing the need of the hour," says the mother of a Mumbai-based bride-to-be working in the IT sector, who is getting married this November. Jewellers across Mumbai say fresh purchases have sharply dipped, while requests for redesigning old jewellery have increased: "Naye gold ki khareedi bahaut kam ho gayi hai. Pehle ke mutabik ab 10% log bhi nahi aate," says Vinod M Parmar from VD Gold. "Modi ji ke kehne ke baad, jo log aa rahe hain woh repurpose karwane hi aa rahe hain. Aur agar koi naya gold khareed bhi raha hai toh bas 2-3 gram hi le raha hai." Prakash Takhtani from MG Sons Jewels says the market has slowed further after the PM's statement. "Log apni purani jewellery repurpose karwane aa rahe hain, par kaam kaafi slow hai," he says, adding that while stores are trying to reduce making charges wherever possible, redesigning old jewellery often increases labour work. "People have a strong sentimental attachment to their old gold, but they still don't want to buy new jewellery," he says....