INTRODUCTION ON GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS :
A product’s quality, reputation or other characteristics can be determined by where it comes from. Geographical indications (GIs) are place names (in some countries also words associated with a place) used to identify products that come from these places and have these characteristics (for example, “Champagne”, ‘Scotch whisky’ “Tequila” or “Roquefort”).
Geographical indications serve to recognize the essential role geographic and climatic factors and/or human know-how can play in the end quality of a product. Like trademarks or commercial names GIs are also IPRs, which are used to identify products and to develop their reputation and goodwill in the market. The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS), prescribes minimum standards of protection of GIs and additional protection for wines and spirits. Articles 22 to 24 of Part II Section III of the TRIPS prescribe minimum standards of protection to the geographical indications that WTO members must provide. Moreover, TRIPS leaves it up to the Member countries to determine the appropriate method of implementing the provisions of the Agreement (including the provisions on GIs) within their own legal framework (Article 1.1).
Notably, under the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS), countries are under no obligation to extend protection to a particular geographical indication unless that geographical indication is protected in the country of its origin. India did not have such a specific law governing geographical indications of goods which could adequately protect the interest of producers of such goods. This resulted into controversial cases like turmeric, neem and basmati. In the case of turmeric, in March 1995, a US Patent was granted to two NRIs at the University of Mississippi Medical Centre Jackson, for turmeric to be used as wound healing agent. This patent was challenged by CSIR at the USPTO on the ground of “Prior Art” claiming that turmeric has been used for thousand years for healing wounds and rashes and hence this was not a new invention. Even CSIR presented an ancient Sanskrit text and a paper published in 1953 in the Journal of the Indian Medical Association as documentary evidence. Upholding the objections, the US patent office cancelled the Patent.
In the case of neem, patents were granted to the US Company WR Grace & Co. for extraction and storage processes. The Indian Government filed a complaint with the US Patent Office accusing WR Grace of copying an Indian Invention but later on they realized that the US based company had in fact created a new invention for the neem extraction process and the patent was not based on traditional knowledge and hence government withdrew its complaint.
The third case which triggered a lot of controversy was granting of a US-patent to Texas based Rice Tec Inc who claimed that this invention pertains to a novel breed of rice plants and grains. The USPTO granted the patent on ‘Basmati Rice Lines and Grains’ in September 1997 after three years examination and accepted all the 20 claims put forward by them. India challenged the patent. A team of agricultural scientists screened several research papers, reports and proceedings of seminars, conferences, symposia, journals, news papers and archives for relevant supporting information to establish the existence of prior art in this area in India. The documentary evidences against the claim Nos. 15, 16 and 17 of the company for novelty were so strong that Rice Tec had to withdraw these claims. The company further withdrew 11 claims. Thus only five of the Rice Tec’s original 20 claims survived the Indian challenges. The patent granted simply gives three hybrid varieties Bas 867, RT 1117 and RT 1121. The new rice has nothing to do with basmati. Importantly, none of the claims granted by the patent pertain to basmati rice as a generic category. Also, the Rice Tec. application was for a patent and not for basmati as a trade mark, so there is no question of Rice Tec getting exclusive rights to use the term basmati. The patent granted, therefore, neither prevents Indian Basmati from being exported to the US nor puts it at a disadvantage in the market.
It may be pointed out here that under US patent laws a patent can not be challenged until after it has been granted, unlike in India where notice is given inviting objections to the patent before it is granted. Therefore, India could challenge the patent only after it was granted.
To prevent such unfair exploitation, it became necessary to have a comprehensive legislation for registration and for providing adequate legal protection to geographical indications. Accordingly the Parliament enacted a legislation titled the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 which came into force with effect from 15th September 2003. The present geographical indications regime in India is governed by the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection) Act, 1999 and the Geographical Indication of Goods (Regulation and Protection) Rules, 2002.
The Object of the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 is three fold, firstly by specific law governing the geographical indications of goods in the country which could adequately protect the interest of producers of such goods, secondly, to exclude unauthorized persons from misusing geographical indications and to protect consumers from deception and thirdly, to promote goods bearing Indian geographical indications in the export market.
This Act is administered through the Geographical Indications Registry established in Chennai under the overall charge of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks. Appeal against the Registrar’s decision would be to the Intellectual Property Appellate Board established under the Trade Marks legislation.
Some commodities that have been recently granted the status of a Geographical Indication by the Government of India include Gir Kesar Mango, Bhalia wheat, Kinhal Toys, Nashik Valley wine, Monsoon Malabar Arabica Coffee, Malabar Pepper, Alleppy Green Cardamom and Nilgiris Orthodox Tea. Other examples include Darjeeling Tea, Mysore Silk, Paithani Sarees, Kota Masuria, Kolhapuri Chappals, Bikaneri Bhujia and Agra Petha.