East India leads in GI registrations, MP records highest registration in 2025-26

Jalbharas on display at Surjya Kumar Modak in Chandannagar Photo Credit: Shreya Banerjee

States located in Eastern India saw a high number of Geographical Indication (GI) registrations between April 2025 and March 2026. During this period, 125 GIs were registered in India and Madhya Pradesh saw 26 GIs. This was followed by West Bengal where the number of registrations during the period was 24.

A geographical indication or GI is a label used on products that have a specific geographical origin and have characteristics or a reputation that is given by that origin. The number of GIs registered in the country is 822.

Handicrafts from Madhya Pradesh that have been awarded GI marks include Khajuraho Stone Craft, Betul Bharewa Metal Craft, Gwalior Paper Mache Craft and Gwalior Stone Craft Handicraft. Other interesting GI additions to Madhya Pradesh are four other tribal crops Sitahi Kutki, Nagdaman Kutki, Baigani Arhar and Mahakoshal Chhatriya Chawal (Chhatriya Paddy). Sitahi Kutki and Nagdaman Kutki are staple foods of Baiga and Gond tribes.

In West Bengal, key products that have been granted 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 popped from Donagar, Kanaktal si Kripatichur’. Cooch Behar, Bengali singing bowl from Bikrampur, Balagarh boat from Hooghly, Kolkatti jewelery from Calcutta.

Out of the 24 products that were awarded, more than half (about 13) GIs were secured by the Chairman of DPIIT (Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade) West Bengal National University of Legal Sciences. “It is the result of fantastic work by our IP chairman that resonates with WBNUJS’s determination to affect social change,” said Vice Chancellor OV Nandimath.

West Bengal Science and Technology Minister Kalyan Chakraborti said the total number of GIs in West Bengal has reached 59 and there are 14 more products which are in the pipeline. “GI cannot remain just a decoration, we have to ensure that the 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 in the last year, most of which are handicrafts and textiles. In Jharkhand, GI registrations were brokered by the Jharkhand Silk Textile and Handicraft Development Corporation, known as JHARCRAFT.

Products from Jharkhand that have received GI marks include Tussar Silk Sarees, handwoven using techniques specific to the state’s weaving communities, and tribal jewelery in motifs associated with its indigenous groups. Some of the products that have been granted GI by Jharkhand include – Tribal Jewelery 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, Jharkhand and Fabria Parhan, Ben Sarees, J. and Jharkhand Jadupatia Paintings.

“GI registration protects the authenticity of handicrafts and is meant to open up national and international markets for the artisans who make them,” said Garima Singh, IAS, Executive Director, JHARCRAFT. She added that twelve more applications from the state are being considered in the GI Registry.

Himachal Pradesh is another state that has seen a high number of GI registrations with 13 registrations, Gujarat and Ladakh (UT) have recorded seven each and six products from Assam have received GIs. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Goa registered five GIs each.

In India, the registration of geographical indications is governed by the Geographical Indications for Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. Geographical indications are part of the intellectual property rights that fall under the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.

Of the 822 registered, handicrafts account for more than half, about 53% of GIs, followed by agricultural products with about 31% of all GIs registered in the country. In terms of national registered geographical location, Uttar Pradesh has the highest registration followed by Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

Published – 06 Jul 2026 07:53 IST