GI dispute : Patiala growers join legal tussle at IPAB

The association says the GI should be allowed based on the geographical area where basmati grows naturally

The ongoing legal battle between growers and traders of basmati rice in Madhya Pradesh against the government authority and some other farmer associations in and out of the country on its Geographical Indication (GI) has seen a new party, the Basmati Growers Association- Patiala, from Punjab, joining the fight.

The Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) allowed this association to implead itself on Wednesday, adding no further impleading petition would be entertained on the matter. They are contesting the MP growers' claim.

When the matter came up for hearing in the IPAB on Wednesday, P V Yogeswaran, counsel appearing for the association, informed the Board that it has filed a petition to implead in the case to submit its arguments against allowing the Geographical indication to Madhya Pradesh and said that he will not repeat the contentions of the other parties.

The IPAB bench consisting of Chairman Justice K N Basha and Technical Member (Trade Marks) Sanjeev Kumar Chaswal admitted the miscellaneous petition allowing the association to implead in the matter, considering the undertaking. The matter has been posted on a later date for final hearing.

Sanjay Gandhi, the counsel appearing for New Darpan Social Welfare Society, which argues in favour of a GI tag for basmati produced from Madhya Pradesh, opposed allowing the impleading of the new party at this stage, stating that it would affect national interest.

The Patiala-based association, in its application to be impleaded, said that the test for protection and right under the Act should not be for areas where basmati rice is cultivatable, but for areas where the rice has been traditionally cultivated, considering its geographical origin and it is traditionally cultivated in the area specified within the boundary of Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand) in east, Firozepur (Punjab) in west, Chamba (Himachal Pradesh) in north and Auraiya (Uttar Pradesh) in South.

The cultivation of basmati rice within the area specified have special quality from the peculiar characteristics of soil and climate, and it is not possible to produce the same quality in any other geographical area, it argues.

Last year, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda) has approached the IPAB against the order of Geographical Indications (GI) Registry, asking them to amend its application for GI registration of basmati rice to include the uncovered area, including certain area in Madhya Pradesh.

Apeda has earlier application for registration of basmati as GI in class 30 under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection) Act, 1999, without including area in MP.

The appeal was against the order of assistant registrar of the GI Registry, issued on December 31, 2013, which allowed the opposition by various parties, including the department of farmer welfare and agriculture the development of MP, Madhya Kshetra Basmati Growers Association Samiti based in Raisen district among others against the application of Apeda.

The dispute emerged as Apeda filed an application with the GI Registry to register the name basmati for rice covering Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and a part of Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, while not covering MP.

The rice growers and producers claimed the rice produced in MP, particularly Morena, Bhind, Gwalior, Sheopur, Datia, Shirpur, Guna, Vidisha, Raiben, Sehore, Hoshangabad, Jabalpur and Narsinghpur, has the required characteristics of rice variety mentioned in the application of Apeda.

The Basmati Growers Association from Pakistan, formed to protect Basmati's GI in Pakistan, also challenged the APEDA's move in the IPAB claiming that " 'Basmati' is a name for a slender, aromatic and long grain variety of rice grown in the specific geographical area at the foothills of the Himalayas in Pakistan."