India, Pakistan to protect basmati right together

India and Pakistan decided on Saturday to mount a joint defence to prevent the unauthorised use of basmati rice, a common heritage of the two countries.

At the conclusion of two-day talks here on registering the “Geographical Indication” (GI) of basmati rice in the US and Europe to prevent the product from being copied by other countries, the two nations said they had ironed out a “number of differences”.

“The talks were aimed at arriving at an agreed definition of basmati rice, which is a common heritage. Both sides shared information on standards and on delimitation of basmati growing areas,” said an official statement issued by the Pakistan government.

“It was also agreed to share information on third-party infringement and to mount a joint defence to (prevent) the unauthorised use of basmati,” it said.

The two sides “hoped to achieve further uniformity of views” in the next round of talks of the Joint Working Group (JWG) on registering basmati rice, which will be held in New Delhi in the first quarter of next year.

Dinesh Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce, headed the Indian team while the Pakistani delegation was led by Joint Secretary (Exports) Azhar Ali Chaudhri of the commerce ministry.

This was the second meeting of the JWG. The group first met in New Delhi in April.

India and Pakistan plan to jointly register the GI of basmati rice under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act.

GI is given to products with a reputation attributable to their place of origin or the area where they are manufactured or grown. It is highlighted during marketing to fetch a higher value.

The two countries started consultations several years ago to prepare a common strategy to register basmati. They were also involved in a row over basmati after Pakistan objected to India’s efforts to market a variety known as “super basmati” some years ago.

Basmati rice is primarily grown in India and Pakistan and the Himalayan foothills are said to produce the best variety.

RiceTec, a US-based company, was granted a controversial patent in September 1997 on basmati rice grains and lines, much to the disadvantage of India and Pakistan. However, India challenged this patent and the company was forced to withdraw its claim.