Jalbharas on display at Surjya Kumar Modak in Chandannagar
| Photo Credit: Shreya Banerjee
States located in eastern India recorded a high number of registrations of Geographical Identification (GI) between April 2025 to March 2026. 125 GIs were registered in India during that period and Madhya Pradesh recorded 26 GI. This was followed by West Bengal where the number of registrations during the period was 24.
A geographical indication or GI is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin. The number of GI registered in the country stands at 822.
The handicraft products from Madhya Pradesh that have been granted GI tags include, Khajuraho Stone Craft, Betul Bharewa Metal Craft, Gwalior Paper Mache Craft and Gwalior Stone Craft Handicraft. The other interesting GI additions to Madhya Pradesh are four additional tribal crops Sitahi Kutki, Nagdaman Kutki, Baigani Arhar, and Mahakoshal Chhatriya Chawal (Chhatriya Paddy). Sitahi Kutki and Nagdaman Kutki are staple foods of the Baiga and Gond tribes.
In West Bengal, the key products which have been given GI status include ‘Jalbhara’ Sandesh from Chandernagore, ‘Monohara’ from Janai, Santiniketan Batik and Santiniketan Ektara from Birbhum, ‘mecha’ Sandesh from Beliatore in Bankura, Banglar ‘Nolen Gur’, Kanakchur popped rice, clay doll of Krishnanagar, sitalpati of Cooch Behar, Bengal singing bowl from Bikrampur, Balagarh boat from Hooghly, Kolkatti jewellery from Kolkata.
Of the 24 products that have been awarded, more than half (about 13) GI have been secured by DPIIT (The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade) chair of West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences. “This is a result of fantastic work by our IP Chair, which resonates with WBNUJS resolve to impact social change ,” Vice- Chancellor O V Nandimath said.
West Bengal Minister of Science and Technology, Kalyan Chakraborti said that the total number of GI in West Bengal have reached 59 and there are 14 other products which are in the pipeline. “GI cannot just remain as an ornamentation, we have to ensure that quality of the product is maintained and we are also thinking about how we can market such products,” the Minister said.
Jharkhand, has also registered 11 GIs over the past one year and most of which are handicrafts and textiles. In Jharkhand, the GI registrations were facilitated by the Jharkhand Silk Textile and Handicraft Development Corporation, known as JHARCRAFT.
The products from Jharkhand that has received GI tags include Tussar Silk Sarees, hand-woven using techniques specific to the State’s weaving communities and tribal jewellery following motifs associated with its indigenous groups. Some of the products that were granted GI from Jharkhand include – Tribal Jewellery of Jharkhand, and Bamboo Crafts of Jharkhand, along with Jharkhand Dokra Craft, Kuchai Silk Sarees and Fabrics, Bhagaiya Sarees and Fabrics, Dumka Chadar Badoni Puppets, Jharkhand Panchi Parhan Sarees and Fabrics, Kesharia Kalakand, Jharkhand Benam, and Jharkhand Jadupatia Paintings.
“GI registrations protect the authenticity of the crafts and are meant to open up national and international markets for the artisans who make them,” said Garima Singh, IAS, Managing Director of JHARCRAFT. She added that twelve further applications from the State are under examination at the GI Registry.
Himachal Pradesh is another State which recorded high number of GI registrations, with 13 registrations, Gujarat and Ladakh (UT) have recorded seven each and six products from Assam have got GI. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Goa have registered five GI each.
In India, Geographical Indications registration is administered by the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act of 1999. Geographical Indications are part of the intellectual property rights that come under the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.
Of the 822 registered, handicrafts comprise more than half about 53% of GI, followed by agricultural products at about 31% of all the GI registered in the country. In terms of Statewide GI registered, Uttar Pradesh has the highest registration, followed by Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
Published – July 06, 2026 07:53 am IST
