The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade) on October 17th, 2023, has notified the Draft rules to further amend the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Rules, 2002[1].
The notification provides that the proposed Draft Rules will be taken into consideration after the expiry of a period of thirty days from October 17th, 2023. It also provides that any objections and suggestions to the Draft Rules can be sent before the expiry of the period so specified to-
The Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi- 110011 or by e-mail at anurag.saxena@nic.in .
The Proposed Amendment to Geographical Indication Rules
The Ministry in the draft Rules has proposed to amend the First Schedule of the Geographical Indications Rules, which provides for the Form and Fees for filing, registration, prosecution, renewal of Geographical Indications applications in India.
It is noteworthy to mention here that the official fees for an application for the registration of a geographical indication has been reduced by 80% and huge rebate in official fees has also been proposed for other processes, such as, renewal of geographical indication registration. A comparative table is demonstrated below:
| S. no. | On what payable | Amount in Rupees- Before Amendment | Amount in Rupees- After Amendment |
| 1 | On application for the registration of a geographical indication for goods included in one class [Section 11(1), rule 23(2)]. | Rs. 5000 | Rs. 1000 |
| 2 | On application for the registration of a geographical indication for goods included in one class from a convention country[Section 11(1), 84(1), rule 23(3) . | Rs. 5000 | Rs. 1000 |
| 3 | On a single application for the registration of a geographical indication for goods in different classes [Section 11(3) rule 23(5)]. | Rs. 5000 for each class | Rs. 1000 for each class |
| 4 | On a single application for the registration of a geographical indication for goods in different classes from a convention country [Section 11(3), 84(1), rule 23(4)]. | Rs. 5000 for each class | Rs. 1000 for each class |
| 5 | On application to Registrar for additional protection to certain goods. Section 22(2), rule 77(1). | Rs. 25,000 | Rs. 12,000 |
It is indeed heartening to see such a commendable step being taken by the Ministry. The same will certainly provide an impetus to the “Vocal for Local” campaign of the Government and is also in consonance with the G20 Declaration, that envisages to protect intellectual property and emphasizes on protection against over commercialization and misappropriation of living heritage on the sustainability and on the livelihoods of practitioners and community bearers as well as Indigenous Peoples.
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