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CS Executive · Economic, Commercial and Intellectual Property Laws · Law relating to Geographical Indications of Goods

A trader seeks to register a GI for "Bhavani" cloth. Evidence shows the word has lost its original meaning with the region and is now used everywhere as the common name for a kind of cloth. Under the GI Act, 1999, how should the Registrar treat the application?

The application must be refused. Section 9 prohibits registering geographical indications that are generic names, meaning names which, though linked to the place of origin, have lost their original meaning and become the common name designating the kind or type of goods.

  1. ARegister it, since the cloth originally came from a specific place
  2. BRefuse it, since a name that has become generic and serves as a designation of the kind or type of goods cannot be registeredCorrect
  3. CRegister it only for a limited period of ten years
  4. DRegister it only if the applicant is an individual producer, not an association

Explanation

Section 9(f) bars registration of GIs determined to be generic names, and Explanation 1 defines generic names as names that relate to the place of origin but have lost their original meaning and become the common name of the goods. Original place of production alone does not save the application.

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