Introduction
In the previous part of this post, we discussed the integral role of GI tags in any economy and the great potential that they provide for a country like India with regard to social and economic development. In this part - firstly, the blog looks into the policy reforms introduced by the government and secondly, it delves into some suggestive measures that may be implemented to facilitate the development of this market.
Policy Reforms Undertaken by Government
GI Tags can also significantly contribute to earning foreign exchange through boosting exports. It provides reliability to consumers due to the place of origin that symbolizes authenticity and good quality. They can diversify India’s export basket. In 2021, agricultural products like Bhalia Wheat, Madurai Jasmine, Jalgaon bananas, etc. were exported for the first time.
In a country, whose population is predominantly employed in a stagnating agricultural sector, one of the things that can actually turn around things for us is a focus on the GI sector. To promote GI tags, the Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts has also started organising India’s first B2B and B2C annual fair for GI-tagged products in Uttar Pradesh from 2023 to promote awareness and demand among domestic consumers.
In recent years, the Central Government has made efforts to promote exports of such products through the Agricultural and Processed Food Export Development Authority by organising Virtual Buyer and Seller Meets. Thus, transactions of products like Naga Mircha from Nagaland, Black Rice from Manipur and Assam to the United Kingdom, Assam Lemon to Italy, and Joynagar Moa of West Bengal to Bahrain were facilitated. This project must now be organised at a larger scale with greater backing and regulation by the Government to incentivize local producers and boost their sales, which in turn will handsomely contribute to the national income of the country.
Suggestions for the Future: Navigating the Way Forward
As we noted in the previous post, there are numerous challenges and loopholes in the current policy framework which block the thriving of GI-tagged products in the market. It is necessary to increase and diversify the product base of GI tags in India and ensure that there is a regular follow-up system is in place to increase the penetration, awareness and consumption of such products in the market.
Firstly, the Central Government can assign State Governments to set up a regulatory body at the State/U.T. level. They will be in a better position to recognize products that deserve GI recognition due to their distinctiveness and historical and cultural significance.
Such regulatory bodies can have two major functions. The first would be to identify products that meet the necessary criteria to be awarded a GI tag and provide assistance to such producers by first making them aware of the significance of GI recognition and protection and then helping them get registered under the act.
The second function requires much more expertise due to its complexities. It would entail the collection and deep analysis of ground-level data of already existing GI-tagged products. This would include recording the time for which a product has been a GI and what has been the difference in the market of the product after the GI tag.
Accordingly, the body should look into the causes of dismal performance, if that is the case, and propose solutions to the State Government so that it can take the necessary steps to address the issues. To avoid red-tapism in the bureaucratic functioning, the body may have its own grievance redressal mechanism that will be in direct contact with the producers and help them with technological support to strengthen supply chains.
The body could also set up subsidiaries that may maintain a register of producers who have performed well. This will not only bring them under the aegis of the government, which would mean more security for them, but the Government can also enter into contracts with them to purchase products from them. This will also lead to better marketing, packaging, and competitive pricing strategies, as well as motivate the producers to adopt more sustainable practices to preserve the products against damage. Also, the government stamp on the products will bolster trust in consumers and can further increase sales in both domestic and international markets.
Another core area that the Government has to focus on is awarding GI tags to manufactured products. Out of the 44 GI tags awarded to manufactured products, only 14 are for Indian products, while the rest are for foreign products. This skewed distribution poses a problem. In a country like ours, where we boast of a rich history of traditional artisans, the number of manufactured products that are unique to a particular region’s art, history, and culture is numerous. While one of the reasons for this could be the discriminatory tax regime during colonial rule, which led to the influx of machine-made goods in India after the Industrial Revolution in Europe and displaced the local artisans, there are still small pockets where the craft has been preserved in the family for generations.
It is necessary to locate these age-old traditions and set up training centres to preserve these practices as they form such an integral part of our cultural heritage. This initiative will also provide employment to many distressed people of lower income strata. In fact, training could be oriented towards including specific population groups like widows. Initiatives like this can have both social and economic positive impacts. Also, these workers post their working years, can be recruited as trainers in skill development programmes so that the art of these products and the traditional knowledge is passed on while also providing financial security to them.
To dig deeper into the sector of manufactured products, we find that one of the most important global categories of GI tags that is largely ignored in India is that of wines and spirits. Only 3 products, namely, Judima from Assam, Feni from Goa and Nashik Wine from Maharashtra, have been awarded GI tags, while many foreign wines and spirits have been recognized: Scotch Whiskey from the United Kingdom, Tequila from Mexico, Champagne from France, Munchenen Bier from Germany, etc. to name a few.
There are many more indigenous beverages, like Apong from Assam and Thaati Kallu from Kerala, that deserve to be awarded a GI tag. The reason for them remaining unrecognized could be political party ideologies as well as public policies for common welfare but this sector is vital for the growth of GI-tagged products in India and definitely cannot be overlooked as it is also highly demanded in foreign markets.
Lastly, it must be highlighted that India ought to work on the development of three sections to improve their position in GI-tagged products: networks, institutions, and markets. We have already discussed how it could go about improving institutions and markets. For networks, India can take cues from foreign jurisdictions. In Brazil, two kinds of networks have been identified: the “expert system” network and the “mobilization” network.
The first network is technical and procedural in nature and deals with legal and political aspects. It is about negotiating through political and bureaucratic institutions to make the process of GI tagging simpler and more attainable for common people. It also seeks to eliminate unnecessary procedural delays and make the entire system more effective and efficient.
The second network is promotional in nature. It seeks to organise campaigns product displays and surveys to reach out to the general public and make them aware of the cultural significance. Thus, as the name suggests, its main aim is to mobilize and garner popular support for the product as a means to expand the market for the product.
The Government of India, too, must take necessary steps in invigorating and revitalizing these networks so that India’s prospects for the GI tags industry are bright.
Conclusion
Therefore, after this detailed discussion, it is safe to conclude that it is critical to develop the market for GI-tagged products. We looked into the legal protection awarded to GI tags and then analysed the data on India’s existing GI tags and discussed the policy reforms introduced by the Government to promote the GI-tagged products. We subsequently looked at the constraints that are adversely impacting the growth of GI-tagged products and then proceeded to lay down a potential future framework that may solve most of the problems.
A simple effort to reimagine GI-tagged products can not only boost India’s economic growth but also contribute to India’s preservation of cultural identity, act as a source of soft power on the international stage, diversify the trade basket, make the manufacturing sector more robust and bring about better standards of living, encouraging a more holistic development in a post-Nehruvian economy.
This article has been authored by Kaustabh Chakrabarti, a student at the Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur. This blog is part of the RSRR's Rolling Blog Series.
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