Shivraj Singh Chouhan mentioned Madhya Pradesh basmati rice ought to get GI tag
New Delhi:
After Punjab requested the centre to not give geographical indication or GI tag to basmati rice grown in Madhya Pradesh, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has written again to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi complaining in opposition to her get together chief and Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.
A GI tag recognises a product as distinctive to a selected locality or area. For instance, a number of types of “Darjeeling tea” have GI tags they usually can maintain that title provided that grown in Darjeeling.
“It saddens me to let you know that the Chief Minister of Congress-ruled Punjab Amarinder Singh has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking to not give GI tag to basmati rice grown in Madhya Pradesh… That letter is unlucky. What Amarinder Singh ji asking is anti-farmer and it exhibits the Congress’s anti-farmer nature,” Mr Chouhan mentioned within the letter.
“You should be conscious that Madhya Pradesh’s basmati rice has a terrific style and is thought within the nation and the world for its good aroma. Giving GI tag to Madhya Pradesh basmati rice will improve the worth of Indian basmati within the worldwide market and also will profit the entire nation in commerce,” mentioned Mr Chouhan, who lately examined constructive for COVID-19. He has been discharged from hospital now.
In his letter to PM Modi, Amarinder Singh mentioned proliferation of GI tags to any extra state will dilute the market worth of basmati rice and hurt the curiosity of exporters. Different states which have GI tags for basmati are Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Delhi, and a few elements in western Uttar Pradesh and some districts in Jammu and Kashmir.
Amarinder Singh mentioned any dilution of GI tag registration might find yourself with Pakistan taking benefit within the worldwide market. Pakistan additionally grows GI tagged basmati rice on the market within the world market.
Countering this argument, Mr Chouhan mentioned, “The case of APEDA (Agricultural and Processed Meals Merchandise Export Improvement Authority) with Pakistan has no relationship with Madhya Pradesh’s declare as it’s underneath the GI Act of India. It’s not linked to inter-country claims of basmati rice.”
The Madhya Pradesh authorities and a basmati growers’ affiliation have already misplaced two separate court docket instances filed in 2016 to problem the exclusion of districts from a map submitted by the APEDA for getting GI tags.
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