Mysore silks gets GI certificate

The Geographical Indicators Registry (GIR) based in the Patent Office, Chennai on Tuesday gave the Karnataka Silk Industries Corporation's Mysore silk the GI registration certificate.

GI show that a product with special characteristics hails from a particular geography. It gives the producer the legal protection over the trademark and protects it from misuse. GI protection can be renewed but there is no enforcement mechanism.

This is the first GI certificate for a product from state. Karnataka has submitted 13 applications to the GIR and this includes Coorg orange, Mysore beetel leaf, Nanjanagud banana applied by the horticulture department, Mysore sandalwood oil and Mysore sandal soap applied for by Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Ltd, Mysore's traditional paintings and Kasturi embroidery applied for by Karnataka State Handicrafts Development Corporation.

GIs like patents, trademarks and copyrights are granted under the range of rights covered under intellectual property rights.