Surat diamond polisher who went to Russia for a better life is ‘missing’

A diamond polisher from Surat who went to Russia in search of a better life for his family is now “missing”, The Indian Express reported on 7 November.

His family has renewed its appeal to the Indian government and the embassy in Moscow for help, according to a recent report by ThePrint on what appears to be the same case. His brother told the publication that he left for Russia after his diamond work in Surat stopped paying enough, joined the Russian army in early June 2026, and assured the family that he would not be sent to the front line. They have not heard from him for about four months.

The bigger picture

Surat, which cuts and polishes most of the world’s diamonds, has been in a long slump. Sanctions on Russian rough diamonds, falling demand in the US and China, the rise of laboratory-grown stones and higher US tariffs have cost lakhs of workers their jobs or much of their income.

Some have been lured abroad by agents and social media videos promising high salaries in Russia, only to end up in the army fighting in Ukraine. In 2024, a 23-year-old from Surat working as a “helper” with the Russian army was killed in a Ukrainian missile strike. India’s External Affairs Ministry has said that well over a hundred Indians were recruited into the Russian army, several of whom have been killed; it has repeatedly asked Moscow to discharge them and warned Indians not to accept such offers.

What’s next

The family is waiting for word from the Indian embassy, which takes up such cases with the Russian authorities.