Dhaka Bureau: Tangail sari, Amrit Sagar Banana of Narsingdi, and Rasgolla of Gopalganj have been recognized as Geographical Indication (GI) products by Bangladesh. Industry Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun and Secretary Zakia Sultana handed over the GI certificates for these three products to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The GI certificate for these 3 products was handed over to the Prime Minister at the beginning of the Council of Ministers meeting at the Prime Minister’s office on Sunday (February 11).
Later, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina unveiled the cover of the book of poems by the architect Yafes Osman, ‘Pitarai Pratichchabi’, by the Minister of Science and Technology. Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader was present there at this time.
The Directorate of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks (DPDT), an organization under the Ministry of Industries, recently published the GI recognition gazette for Saree in Tangail, Amrit Sagar Kala in Narsingdi, and Rasgolla in Gopalganj.
India’s Ministry of Industries recently granted GI recognition to a saree named ‘Banglar Tangail Saree’ or ‘Tangail Saree of Bengal’. They also received approval from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
The issue sparked a strong reaction in Bangladesh. Saree traders, lawyers, and rights activists have raised questions about how India can get GI recognition for the Tangail saree as its own product, even though Tangail is an area of Bangladesh and the Tangail saree is Bangladesh’s own product.
After that, the relevant departments of the Bangladesh government took initiative. Tangail district administration applied for GI recognition of Tangail sarees on February 6. Later, it was approved and gazetted by the Directorate of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks.
