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India has applied for a special trademark registration for Basmati rice in Sri Lanka. Where Pakistan exports thousands of metric tons of basmati rice annually. If India's request is successful, Pakistan's Basmati exports to Sri Lanka are expected to suffer.
According to a reliable source in the Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP), the association has informed their members (exporters) that the Sri Lankan government has updated that India has applied for Basmati as a certification trademark.
According to him, officials of the Ministry of Commerce have also been given the information and asked to take up the issue with relevant forums and oppose the registration of a trademark.
“In case India succeeds in getting registration of Basmati as a certification brand no exporter of Pakistan would be able to export to Sri Lanka using the word “Basmati” on the packaging,” he said.
This would be another attempt by India to damage Pakistan’s rice exports after it applied for the exclusive Geographical Indication (GI) tag for Basmati in the European Union last year.
However, according to Taufiq Ahmed Khan, former vice president of REAP, the Indian attempt is simply aimed at damaging Pakistan as Pakistan has good exports of aromatic rice to Sri Lanka under the Pakistan-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement.
“Not only Sri Lanka, but Pakistan should also now check every country which imports Pakistan’s rice as India is secretly applying for registration of a trademark for the Basmati, the high-value rice item,” he said adding that the Ministry of Commerce and the country’s embassies in foreign countries should be vigilant about such happenings. “It shows the Indian intention to hurt Pakistan’s lucrative markets abroad despite the fact that Delhi should not indulge in such activities as the product is not the GI of only India,” he added.
It may be mentioned here that the case between India and Pakistan over the GI tag in the EU is still undecided. Both the countries may now fight the case of exclusive rights to the GI of Basmati rice in EU courts as the time period extended for bilateral negotiation and resolving the case amicably ended early this month.
Pakistan has opposed Indian claims of exclusive rights of holding the GI for Basmati in the EU as Islamabad considers the product as a joint product of the two countries. However, the Indian side is reportedly reluctant to accept joint ownership of the product despite the fact that the aromatic rice is produced in both countries. Find more.
Source: Online/KSU
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