An introduction to Indian Contract Act, 1872 by Shraddha Pandit
Geographical indication - WTO
1. GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
[GI] IN INDIA & SOCIAL FUNDING
Presented By:
Charvi Puri
Gayathri M
Jaya Khemani
Pavithra Narasimhan
Payal Agrawal
2. AGENDA
Definition and scope of geographical indications
Historical development
Why do GIs matter to us?
Essentials of GI application
Before GI Act
Provisions under National Legislation
Socio Economic Impact of GI
The Protection of Geographical Indications in India
Impacts of GI registration in India- Example
Challenges and problems of GIs in India
Social Funding
oriGIn
Conclusion
3. Definition and scope of
Geographical Indications
A geographical indication (GI) acts as a mechanism that
helps producers differentiate their products from
competing products in the market and enables
producers to build a reputation and goodwill around
their products that will fetch a premium price.
Under Article 22, the scope of protection is composed of
three aspects.
Protection against the use of indications that mislead
the public or are deceptive
Protection against the use of indications in a manner
that are acts of unfair competition and
Refusal or invalidation of trademarks that contain or
consist of indications, where it may mislead the public.
4. Historical development
Relatively new concept introduced by the
TRIPS Agreement (WTO1994)
Previously, closely related concepts like
'appellations of origin', 'indications of
source' 'designations of origin‘ were in
use.
But these offered limited scope as they
were ratified only by few countries.
Finally, signing of the TRIPS Agreement
brought GI to the fore in multilateral
negotiations (more than 150 countries)
5. However, only minimum standards of
protection for GIs were given.
There was the problem of hierarchy in
the levels of protection based on
arbitrary and specious categorization of
goods under TRIPs agreement.
Finally, with the support from EU
countries, TRIPS provides a basic
standard of protection to all other goods
and higher standards of protection to
wines and spirits.
6. Why do GIs matter to us?
GIs are important to our producers
and to our exports
GIs play an important role in the future
of our agricultural policy
The consumers benefit because of the
existence of GIs
GIs help in the economic development
of many developing countries
GIs promote free trade
7. Essentials of GI application
Applicant- represent the interest of the
producers
Application- in writing( prescribed format)
Addressed to-the Registrar of Geographical
Indications along with prescribed fee.
Problems in giving GI – India
Diversity which makes 1000s of products
eligible for the tagging
Difficulty to organize small household units
into associations
8. Before GI Act
Consumer protection laws
Passing-off actions in court
CTM
History of legislation
Socio-economic perspective
Employment
Regulation of the market
Diversification of production
9. To curb unfair practices by competitors
To tap the potential economic and socio-economic
benefits emanating
Judicial perspective
Basmati rice patent case
Rice tech patented (saying Basmati is a generic
name)
Had to approach all countries where Rice tech
trademarked “Texasmati”
India had no law protecting GI then; passing off by
court, which cannot be done frequently
To protect globally, start with national legislation
10. Provisions under the National
Legislation
GI Act-Sep-2003
GI Indications Registry( where right
holders can register)
Central govt has the discretion to
decide the level of protection
Once GI in India, easier to seek
protection in other countries
11. Socio Economic Impact
India home to many GI products
Price premium in the international
market
Depends on sizeable market
Costs incurred(Marketing and
production costs) subtracted from
premium, profitable?
Does the benefits reach the bottom
end of the value chain ( i.e. producers)
12. Does the developing countries have
enough incentives ?
Contribution to the poor producers
Empirical research to address the above
problems
13. Protection of GIs in India
First Indian GI was registered in 2004
Maximum number of products were
registered in 2008 – 09
Handicrafts hold the top most position
followed by agricultural and
manufactured products
14. Food products are a recent addition,
started when Dharwad Pedha from
Karnataka granted the status.
Most GIs have been registered from the
Southern States.
Only 3 GIs from all of North East India.
Phulkari is the only GI in India which
covers more than 1 state – Punjab,
Haryana and Rajasthan.
15. Example- Banaras Brocades and
Saris
Secured registration under the GI Act
in September 2009
Industry is impacted by host of
variables in terms of raw materials and
labor issues, the socio-economic
aspects of the region, etc.
Changing market situation leads to
reduced income which results in
increase in poverty and malnutrition
16. Because of this, farmers commit suicide or
go for employment shifts
Unavailability of skilled weavers and
quality raw material
Chinese imitation saris, giant increase in
the number of operating power looms,
complex market dynamics, etc.–presence
of all these cannot give any guarantee of
authenticity and quality
17. Challenges and Problems of GIs
in India
It does not protect knowledge or
technology as such. It only protects the
name or indication.
This essentially means that the famous
Banarasi sari can be produced anywhere
in the world but it cannot be named
‘Banarasi sari’.
For a price-conscious consumer, it might
not make much sense to buy GI certified
products at a premium, if the same
product is available elsewhere.
18. The question of beneficiaries
Ambiguity in the definition of the term ‘producer’ in the legislation which
does not distinguish between real producer, retailer or dealer.
As of now, traders enjoy more economic benefits than the actual
producers of GI.
Appropriate Identification of products
Identification of GI based products and their registration is happening
without adequate due thoroughness.
Groups filling for GI registration do not assess the commercial prospect of
a GI product in the domestic and international markets
Defining the characteristics
GI status could lead to the creation of ‘clubs’ (connoting exclusion of many
others).
“Club Asset” for a club membership consisting of the firms that were
granted the legal right to use the GI as a collectively, due to two main
features: excludability of benefits and non-rivalry in benefits.
Benefits to right-holders might decrease due to dilution of the GI
19. • Defining geographical boundaries
Big challenge, particularly in the context of non-agricultural products. Ex.
Banarasi Sari and Baluchar Saris
• Post-registration follow-up – brand building and marketing
Need for promotion and continuous awareness building particularly
among the consumers
There currently exists no standard procedures for consultation before
registration and it is most probable that pre- application process may end
up in inadequate consultations with various stakeholders including
retailers.
For most of the Indian GIs that do not have any established image in th
ese markets, consumers in the developed countries would have to b
e informed of the existence of a GI as well as its whereabouts and would
be required to be convinced of the quality associated with it.
• Registration in Foreign Countries
The challenges associated with GI protection also include technicalities
involved in the registration process in various foreign countries, high
expenses incurred in appointing a watch-dog agency to get information
on misappropriation, and financial resources that are needed for
pursuing legal battles,
20. Social Funding
Let’s take example of Kashmiri Pashmina. The
weaving had been badly hit by machine-made
look-a-like that used a combination of other
wools mixed with Pashmina to earn the
premium that the genuine article commands
It got its GI registration some four years ago
but it was only in August 2013 that a high-tech,
tamperproof label was introduced to protect its
IP.
This process is not easy! Such measures cost
money from start to scratch…
21. Social
Funding
Return on
Investment
Social
Investment
Substantial investments for GI are required to
boost and protect them in an apt manner.
It is mentioned in the Act as: “Provident,
superannuation, welfare and other funds.”
This indicates that social funding or
investments for the matter definitely helps,
specially for developing countries like India.
22. Lack of Awareness & Then…
One of the reasons for not having effective and speedy GI
implementation is lack of awareness. But…
Even after much persuasion to the people (specially farmers), the
registration requires two steps.
For the first stage of registered proprietor, the fee is, say for a place, ₹
5,000 while for the second stage of authorised user, it is ₹ 500 per
individual.
Many of the registrations under the GI Act have been sponsored [for the
application fees] by the government and most of them want similar
sponsorships for registering for the second stage too.
Legally, without registering for the second stage, the first stage doesn’t
hold good.
23. Funds
Although India has taken the first step by enacting
a law to protect the interests of local manufacturers
of different regions, a lot needs to be done before
the GI process can be called a success.
While, enforcement is not guaranteed, such legal
battles involve huge expenses. In fact, a major
challenge faced relates to legal and registration
expenses, costs of hiring an international watch
dog agency and fighting infringements in overseas
jurisdictions.
24. Organization for an International
Geographical Indications Network
Aware of the risks surrounding the future of
GIs, producers from all over the world have
come together:
for an improved international protection of GIs
for recognition of their essential role in
sustainable development
Hence, oriGIn was started, allowing for
exchanges between producers and favoring
the transfers of experience and expertise.
25. Objectives of oriGIn
The extension of additional protection of
Article 23 of TRIPs for all GI products, as
available to wines and spirits
The establishment of a legally binding
multilateral register for all GI products.
The reinforcement of technical assistance in
favour of developing countries, to allow them
to benefit from the advantages of GIs.
26. Conclusion
Every country – whether developed,
developing or in transition – has products
which are the fruits of its culture and know-
how.
Many registered GIs in India face acute
shortage of in-house funds for taking up
post-registration measures. In such cases,
the Government or NGOs could proactively
and financially assist to set up separate
funds that expedite the post-registration
process.
27. What is at stake is not only the goodwill and
reputation attached to the precious GIs of
our country, but also the huge commercial
and trade implications associated with them
With the legal mechanism in place, the time
is now ripe for the legitimate users of each
and every GI of Indian origin to come
forward in securing the ‘absolute’protection
for their respective GIs at the national level
Editor's Notes
recommends that the right to use the registered GIs must be confined to the actual producers of the GIs from the identified geographical area and only with their permission, the traders and others involved in the trade could use the GIs.