What is the first thing that involves your mind once you hear Mahabaleshwar? Once you hear Nagpur? Nashik Or Darjeeling? Isn’t it STRAWBERRIES, ORANGES, GRAPES, and TEA, respectively? As we all know these lip-smacking fruits and the tea are special because they derive their qualities from their places of production, let us understand more about their importance and protection of their originality.

            A geographical indication (GI) is essentially a place name that identifies the geographic source of a good and signifies a distinctive quality, reputation, or other characteristics of the good that is essentially attributable to that geographic source. GIs are protected as an Intellectual Property Right under the TRIPS agreement administered by the World Trade Organization (WTO). However, for the effective protection of GIs in India, The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 is enacted. GIs can be used for both agricultural as well as industrial products.

Difference between a GI and Trademark

            GIs identify goods as originating from a particular place whereas trademarks identify goods as originating from a particular company. A GI can’t be assigned or licensed to anyone outside that place or not belonging to the group of authorized producers. By contrast, a trademark can be assigned or licensed to anyone anywhere in the world.

Registration  

            Registration of a GI is not mandatory in India. If registered, it’ll afford better legal protection to facilitate an action for infringement. Section 20 (1) of the GI Act states that nobody “shall” be entitled to institute any proceeding to prevent or to recover damages for, the infringement of an “unregistered” GI. The registration of a GI gives its registered owner and its authorized users the right to get relief for infringement. A GI is registered for a period of ten years and is subject to renewal of its registration at its tenth year to further remain registered for another ten years.

Status of GI Registrations in India

                        More than 300 GIs of Indian Origin has already been registered with the GI Registry. These include Basmati Rice, Pochampalli Ikat (textiles), Naga Mircha (Agricultural), Odisha Rasagola, Madhubani paintings, Thanjavur Doll (Handicraft), Banaras Brocades and Sarees, Kolhapuri Chappal, Alphonso Mango, Kolhapur Jaggery, Paithani Sarees, Kathputlis of Rajasthan, Mysore silk, Surat Zari Craft, East India Leather (Manufactured), Jamnagari Bandhani, Bagh Prints of Madhya Pradesh, Beed Custard Apple, Nizamabad Black Pottery, etc.

Recently, two more GIs got added to the list –

a)         Chak-Hao (Black-Rice): It is scented glutinous rice popularly known as “Black Rice”. It has been cultivated in Manipur for centuries.

b)         Kashmir Saffron: It is globally renowned as a unique spice. Its characteristics are longer and thicker stigmas, natural deep-red colour, high aroma, bitter flavor, chemical-free processing, and high quantity of crocin, safranal, and picrocrocin. It is very precious and costly.

            GI certification builds up the product’s reputation not just within the country but throughout the entire world. It is arduous to put each product produced by producers in diverse regions into the list of GIs. Therefore, the officials have set standards for a product to acquire a GI tag. GIs stand on an equal footing with other IPR. There is no difference in the level of protection granted to GIs in comparison with the protection of other fields of IPR. The GI tag is useful for not just producers but customers and the nation as well.

By

Deepika Pandey

2nd Year LLB Student

Bharati Vidyapeeth New Law College