Bengal wins claim over Rasogolla

West Bengal wins over Odisha to get GI tag for the sweet

West Bengal’s famous Banglar Rasogolla has got Geographical Indication (GI) tag from the Indian patent office.

“Banglar Rasogolla from West Bengal gets Geographical Indication (GI) tag. It is a pure white, spongy ball of ‘Chhana’ dipped in light sugar syrup,” Cell for IPR Promotions and Management said in a tweet.

Though this has created a lot of excitement in Bengal, disappointment was seen across Odisha who were said to be in a tug-ofwar with Bengal over claiming the sweet.

The food processing industries and horticulture department of West Bengal government on September, 2015 had written a letter to the Geographical Indications Registry office in Chennai seeking official seal over its claim.

It said that the way the dessert is made in the state is different from that of other states. Odisha has claimed that the sweet originated from the Jagannath Temple in Puri, where it is a part of the religious rituals since the 12th century. Odisha calls it Pahala Rasogolla.

On the other hand, West Bengal had asserted that confectioner Nobin Chandra Das (1845-1925) is widely known as the one, who created Rasogolla in the 1860s.

Sources said, In a tiny Bagbazar in North Kolkata, Das set up a sweet shop in 1866. His ambition was to create a completely original sweet, that would bring new excitement to the Bengali palate. He toiled for three years and his labour paid off in 1868.

WB sought claim over Rasogolla by saying that Nobin Chandra Das, a confectioner from the state, created Rasogolla in the 1860s.