PUNE: The registration for the Geographical Indication (GI) certificates for the Alphonso mango growers of Konkan areas started two months ago. Alphonso grower associations such as Devgad Taluka Mango Growers Cooperative Society; Konkan Hapus Amba Utpadak Ani Vikrate Sangh, Ratnagiri; Kelshi Parisar Amba Utpadak Sangh, Dapoli; and Dr Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli in Ratnagiri district have been given the proprietorship and have the authority for the registration and application process.
In October 2018, Alphonso mangoes from the five districts of Konkan region such as Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Palghar, Thane and Raigad districts of Maharashtra were registered for the GI.
A GI is an indication used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin.
Konkan Hapus Amba Utpadak Ani Vikrate Sangh, Ratnagiri Chairman, Vivek Bhide said, “The registration process for GI certificate started since March.”
“However as the season was going on, growers were not showing interest. It sped up since a couple of months ago and till now we have received more than 200 applications out of which around 50 per cent have received the certificates. We have got the authority for the registration process as we are providing growers with all forms and other formalities and then sending it to the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion Office in Chennai. Thereafter, it takes a couple of weeks for that office to issue a number and then after a fortnight, the GI certificate gets issued. It is a one-and-half month process.”
An amount of Rs 600 has been charged as application fee from the growers. “This GI certificate is just the beginning for the international branding of Alphonso mangoes and it will take a few years for the brand to get established. It will also help in improving the quality and increasing export of the Alphonso mangoes which will eventually benefit the farmers. Growers from different areas of Konkan can add the name of the place as prefix or suffix with Hapus,” added Bhide.
However, growers from Devgad and Ratnagiri decided to brand their Alphonso mangoes by using as prefix/ suffix the name of the area with Hapus.
Ajit Gogate, Chairman, Devgad Taluka Mango Growers Cooperative Society said, “We started the registration a couple of months ago and till now we have sent more than 150 applications to Chennai office. Out of which 50 got certificates and we are hoping to touch a target of 1,000. Hapus grown in Devgad has a specific taste which is popular among consumers and therefore we have decided to use Devgad with Hapus.”
“The Alphonso mangoes grown in Ratnagiri and Devgad have specific taste which is due to the climatic structure and soil health of these areas. Consumers basically resonate with these varieties of Hapus. However, the GI applies to all five districts of Konkan belt, but we have permission to use the name of the region with Hapus and we will be using it so that consumers can easily identify their favourites,” said Sharad Paranjape, Chairman, Kelshi Parisar Amba Utpadak Sangh, Dapoli, Ratnagiri district.
