And for a Friday ….. as the humble Kolhapuri Chappal makes international fashion headlines ….. some thoughts … some musings….
I feel a great sense of satisfaction that my personal efforts as CMD of a large MNC when we spearheaded the national campaign for India to move ahead with the new IPR regime , accepting TRIPS & getting the country to finally implement the WTO agreement in 2005 …. a watershed moment in India’s Innovation roadmap …….Compliance required the Nation to transition from Process Patent to Product Patent ….The entire Ecosystem had to be redrawn & India emerged into the polity of Innovation countries with the passage of the “National IPR policy in 2016” ……. which included the up gradation of GI tags. (Geographical Indication) …….the harbinger of the current success in ensuring the Italian fashion Giants Prada come to the Chappal makers in Kolhapur in Maharashtra ……. This is a “Test-case” ……must be handled very carefully by the Govt , The Chambers of Commerce , Kolhapuri Chappal manufacturers & smart, Globally knowledgeable Indian IPR lawyers ….
Market potential of GI tagging thru commercial exploitation is huge ……the best example is Champagne a type of sparkling wine from grapes grown in the Champagne region in north Eastern France …. only brands from those few villages can be called Champagne eg. brands Moët & Chandon , Krug ,Mercier etc etc who charge a massive huge hefty premium over all other Sparkling wines due the exclusivity of calling their wines as Champagne …….same principal …..imagine the Kolhapuri chappal sells at Rs 1200 whereas with the Prada brand the global customer pays equivalent of one lakh rupees …. that’s the power of IPR & GI tagging ….if well executed ….. India has so far issued 605 GI tags the first was “ Darjeeling Tea” … a brand now known to most Tea drinkers abroad …..…… many well known GI tags have still to be commercially exploited …. including Kancheepuram Sarees, Thanjavur Paintings , Tirupati Ladoos, Alleppey Green Cardamom….. the list is huge ….. but we need to develop the local commercial & legal eco system of the Developed world into our Villages & small towns …. a huge opportunity for our bright MBAs & IPR law graduates ….. & well implemented …sky is the limit …..
India as the fourth largest Economy opens many new Vistas thru IPR …….many exciting opportunities …waiting to be discovered in the centuries old Indian Arts , crafts , cuisine , music , dance forms etc etc …. let us all endeavour to maximise this …… the legal way …… the globally competitive way …. the SEEGOS way.