New Delhi: `Tirupati laddoo` offered to devotees at the Lord Venkateswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh has been awarded geographical copyright that bars others from naming or marketing the sweetmeat preparation under the same name.
The Tirumala-Tirupati Devasthanams, a trust that administers the Venkateswara Temple in the Tirumala hills, had applied for Geographical Indication (GI) with the Chennai- based Geographical Indication Registry in March last year.
"The GI certificate for Tirupati Laddoo has been granted to the trust (TTD). The Laddoo is now protected under law and nobody can copy it," GL Verma, Assistant Registrar of Trade Marks and GI, told reporters.
Under GI, the right to marketing a product is tied to a definite geographical territory and the manufactured goods
should be produced or processed or prepared in that territory.
Popular items that have been granted GI tag world over include Champagne and Tequilla, and the procedure helps in preventing others from surreptitiously exploiting a brand name that has evolved over a period of time.
The GI status provides legal protection and facilitates for action in case of infringement. GIs are covered as an element of Intellectual Property Rights.
PH Kurian, Controller-General of Patents, Designs, and Trade Marks, also confirmed granting of GI status to Tirupati Laddu.
Bureau Report
First Published: Tuesday, September 15, 2009, 14:57
