After much delay, the process of registration of basmati rice, famaous across the globe for aroma and long grain, under the geographical indications (GI) certification has started in the country. In a meeting of the GI consultative committee last week, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda) submitted that basmati rice cultivation to be restricted within the geographical boundaries of Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Delhi and 26 districts of western Uttar Pradesh and two districts of Jammu.
Apeda officials said that registration under the geographical indications of goods (registration and protection) Act, 1999 would take another six months. ?We want to maintain the integrity of the products for which getting a GI certification is critical,? Asit Tripathy, chairman, Apeda told FE.
As per the GI Act, a person caught infringing a registered GI is liable for imprisonment of 6 months to 3 years apart from fine, which may vary from a minimum of Rs 50,000 to a maximum of Rs 2 lakh.
GI is given to products with a reputation attributable to its place of origin or the area where it is manufactured like Darjeeling tea, Kancheepuram silk, Mysore agarbathi and Champagne, etc. More than 110 products have got GI registration in the country.
In the absence of GI, many private companies have been unsuccessfully trying to register their products as ‘basmati’, which commands premium in the global market. In last two years, India and Pakistan have jointly initiated many steps to register ‘basmati’ under GI for protecting its premium market abroad. As per the current understanding, Pakistan would register Basmati with its trademark authority.
After the registration of basmati in both the countries under GI norms, India and Pakistan need to register ‘basmati rice’ jointly in all key exports markets like the European Union and the Gulf countries.
An amendment to the Apeda act was passed by Parliament last year, which empowered Apeda to undertake measures for registration and protection of the intellectual property rights for special products from India. It also provided for protection of intellectual property rights of a new category of agricultural or processed food products to be called ‘special products’. Basmati rice is the first such product.
An Apeda official said that the authority has identified more than 300 instances of infringement of rights as far as name ‘basmati’ is concerned in 47 countries. At least 76 of such cases has been settled in favour of India.
RiceTec Inc, a US-based company, was granted a controversial patent in September 1997 on basmati rice grains and lines. India had challenged this patent and RiceTec Inc was forced to withdraw its claim.
Basmati, an aromatic long-grain rice variety grown in the Gangetic plains in India and Pakistan, commands a premium price over other rice varieties in the global market because of its texture, taste and aroma.
India’s basmati rice exports have been rising consistently since the last one decade. In 2007-08, India exported basmati rice valued at around Rs 3,548 crore, up almost 43% from the previous year. In 2008-09, exports stood at almost Rs 7,000 crore. In terms of volume, exports have gone up from 7.71 lakh tonne in 2003 to an estimated 1.5 million tonne in 2008. Pakistan also exports similar quantity of basmati rice.
Industry source said India’s basmati rice exports are expected to touch 3 million tonne in the current financial year. Till December 2009, the country exported around 2.3 million tonne.