India is going to add two new products into Geographical Indications (GI). GI is used to denote the name or sign, of the products which are from a particular geographical area or somewhat related to the origin like town, region or nation. Thus Geographical Indication gives the rights to its holder, and acts as the certification mark and also shows that the specified product consists of the same qualities and good reputation due to its origin from that specific location. GI is protected under Articles 1(2) and 10 of the Paris Convention for the protection of Industrial Property and Articles 22, 23 and 24 of TRIPS (Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights).
After getting GI protection for Tirupati Laddu and other products, India will be giving GI protection to “Pattamadai pai” and “Traditional lamps”. “Pattamadai pai“is a speciality of Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu and was filed on 25th January, 2010 and “Traditional lamps” from Nachiarkoli are the speciality of Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu and they were filed on 8th February, 2010. According to a news article in The Hindu. The Tamil Nadu Handicrafts Development has filed applications with the Geographical Indications Registry, Chennai for the registration of “Pattamadai mats” and “Nachiarkoil brass lamps”.
In an interview to The Hindu, Chinnaraja G. Naidu (Assistant Registrar of Trade Marks and Geographical Indications) said, “After receiving the application, we have published them in the journal under the provisions of Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. After a period of 90 days, by the end of January, we will grant the registration to the goods.”
The Geographical Indications journal which was published on 30th October, 2012 can be accessed here.
The two products which are getting protection are:
1. Pattamadai mats: Pattamadai is a small small village situated in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. It is the home of the “Pattamadai mats” which are woven there by Labbai muslims. The main component of these mats is the ‘korai’ grass which is grown on the banks of river Tamiraparani.
2. Nachiarkoil brass lamps: Nachiarkoil is one of the villages in Tiruvidaimarudur Taluk in Thanjavur District in Tamil Nadu State. Most of the inhabitants in this village have the occupation of lamp making. These lamps are mostly made up of brass.
CONCLUSION
Another step forward, by India, to protect its Geographical Indications. India has already registered 178 Geographical Indications and are trying to add more to the list. This is a good approach as many of the workers who work on manufacturing such things are living a poor life. GI protection will help them grow economically and help grow India too.
