GI Tag for 3 products from UP sought

• 3 applications from Uttar Pradesh have been filed with the Geographical Indications Registry, seeking a Geographical Indication (GI) tag for the Bundelkhand Kathiya Gehu (Wheat), Banarasi Tabla and Sitapur Durrie.

Bundelkhand Kathiya Gehu

• The filing for the Bundelkhand Kathiya Gehu has been made by the Khatiya Wheat Bangra Producer Company Ltd., Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, under the agriculture category.
• This particular wheat is sought to have high nutritional value and a high fibre content.
• It is usually sown in the last week of October or first week of November and is harvested between March and April.
• The applicant has claimed that this wheat has several medicinal values.

Sitapura Durrie

• The application for it has been filed by Export Promotion Bureau, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh under the handicrafts category.
• Durrie- a thick flat woven rug/carpet traditionally used as floor coverings.
• The applicants have indicated that the Sitapur Durrie is unique and is different from a carpet.
• The motifs and colour combinations are unique from what is made in rest of country.
• While carpets are produced by knotting pile yarn to warp, durries are made by inter weaving weft and warp.
• These durries are made of cotton, wool, jute and silk weavers who work in cottage industries, kharkhanas or privately run factories spread across villages in Sitapur town, Biswan, Laharpur among others.

Banarasi Tabla (musical instrument)

• Application was filed by Subah-E-Banaras Anand Kanan, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.
• It is made of different kinds of wood like sheesham, neem, mahogany and babla wood.
• There is a huge demand for these tabla’s in the local market as well as the international markets.

Geographical Indication (GI)

• A GI is an agricultural, natural or a manufactured product (handicrafts 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.
• It is a mark of authenticity and ensures that registered authorized users or at least those residing inside the geographic territory are allowed to use the popular product names.
• GI tag in India is governed by Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection) Act, 1999 which is issued by the Geographical Indications Registry (Chennai).

Benefits of GI Tag

• It provides legal protection to Indian Geographical Indications thus preventing unauthorized use of the registered GIs by others.
• It promotes economic prosperity of producers of goods produced in a geographical territory.
• Also leads to recognition of the product in other countries thus boosting exports.
• No other producer can misuse the name of GI product to market similar products.

Validity of registration of Geographical Indication

• The registration of a geographical indication is valid for a period of 10 years which can be renewed from time to time for further period of 10 years each.
• The first product in India to be accorded with GI tag was Darjeeling tea in the year 2004-05.