Centre tweaks GI rules, cuts fees by 80%
The amendment likely to come into force from Nov 17
Product’s Origin
- DPIIT provides GI tags
- India had 478 GI tags
- TN, Maha, Karnataka, Kerala and UP topping the list
- Govt promoting GIs by taking up awareness programmes
- GIs protected under national legislation and intl treaties
New Delhi: In a bid to promote geo-graphical indications (GIs), the central government has decided to substantially amend the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Rules. An important feature of the amendment is the reduction in the fees for filing GI applications by 80 per cent, official sources told Bizz Buzz.
The amendment is expected to come into force on November 17.
As the name of the term suggests, a GI is a sign indicating a product comes from a particular region and has particular characteristics, a good reputation, or other traits associated with that geographical origin. Till May, India had 478 GI tags, with Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, and Uttar Pradesh topping the list.
Darjeeling tea was the first Indian product to obtain the GI tag.
The Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, is responsible for providing GI tags. The department has carried out several initiatives, in consultation with other stakeholders, so that exclusive GI goods could highlight Indian tradition, culture, and entrepreneurial activity under a unified umbrella, the sources said.
Also, the DPIIT recently approved a spending of Rs75 crore for more than three years for the promotion of GIs in awareness initiatives, they added. GIs are protected under national legislation and international treaties in many nations.
GI protection can take various forms, depending on the legal structure of each country. The protection of geographical names and signs of origin attempts to prevent the unauthorised use of geographical names or signs of origin on items that do not originate in the designated region and do not fulfill the appropriate requirements or qualities, an official website says.
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) provided this definition in 2018, emphasizing that the markers of a product’s origin are, in reality, the GIs. The name ‘geographical indication’ derives from the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, which was signed in 1883 in Paris, France.
