Shivraj renews claim for basmati’s GI tag
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has launched a strong defence of his state’s claim on a GI tag for basmati rice grown in the state, rejected some days earlier by the central registry.
He has been here for two days, meeting senior ministers in the government, for central intervention on the issue that affects the livelihood of around 80,000 farmers in 13 districts.
A GI or Geographical Indication is a name or sign used on products which correllate it to a specific geographical location or origin. None other than those registered as authorised users or those residing in the said territory may use it. An example is Darjeeling tea.
The MP government is asking for the GI tag for rice grown in these districts as basmati on a par with Punjab, Haryana and some other northern states. But the GI Registry last week rejected the state’s claim, saying MP was not in the Indo-Gangetic plain and did not enjoy the popular perception with respect to basmati cultivation.
The first result is that basmati grown on around 200,000 hectares by 80,000 farmers lose the premium it commanded till now in the market. With MP facing a slew of protests from farmers due to fall in prices of agricultural commodities, this was a decision the government could ill-afford, more so when it faces a tough electoral battle in a few months.
The state government has decided to challenge the order at the high court in Chennai, where the GI registry operates, as a wing of the office of the controller-general of patents, designs and trade marks.
Officials said the petition to now grant MP a GI tag for basmati grown in the state was filed at the behest of Punjab and Haryana based rice millers. The GI tag sought was for PUSA-1 and PUSA-1121 basmati varieties cultivated in MP.
Chouhan has argued with the central ministers that there is documentary evidence of farmers in the state cultivating basmati for 105 years. Establishing the suitability of agro-climatic conditions and the quality of produce. And, that the central government itself has been supplying basmati breeder seeds to the state since 1999, while prominent basmati exporters and producers also source from MP.
As for the argument that inclusion of basmati grown in MP would weaken India’s claim in the international market, he has said India is answerable to only itself under the GI Act.
“Instead of protecting the legitimate rights of basmati farmers of MP, unfortunate export perceptions are being catered to at the expense of the rights of Indian farmers,” Chouhan wrote in a letter to commerce minister Suresh Prabhu.