Seven products from Odisha, ranging from the Similipal Kai chutney made with red weaver ants to the embroidered Kapda Ganda shawl, have bagged the coveted Geographical Indication (GI) tag in recognition of their exclusivity to the state.
Geographical Indications of goods refer to the place of origin of a product. Such tags are accorded as they convey an assurance of quality and distinctiveness, attributable to the fact of its origin in a specific geographical locality, region or country.
In India, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, awards GIs.
A GI registration is given to an area, not a trader, but once a product gets the registration, traders dealing in the product can apply to sell it with the GI logo.
Authorized traders are each assigned a unique GI number. If any unauthorized trader tries selling the product under that name, they can be prosecuted under The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.
The government will provide financial assistance to eligible agencies for undertaking initiatives for the promotion of Geographical Indications (GIs) products.
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has issued operational guidelines for financial assistance for undertaking the initiatives for the promotion of GIs.
DPIIT is an arm of the commerce and industry ministry which deals with investments and intellectual property rights (IPRs). A GI, a kind of IPR, is primarily an agricultural, natural or manufactured product (handicraft and industrial goods) originating from a definite geographical territory.
Typically, such a name conveys an assurance of quality and distinctiveness, which is essentially attributable to the place of its origin.
By
KMA Team
