Should India adopt Bi-lateral trade agreements just like China and

European Union?
As per the TRIPS Agreement Section 3 of Part II "Geographical Indications" are defined as an
indication which identifies a good as originating in the territory of a Member, or a regional
locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the good is
essentially attributable to its geographical origin.

GI is the only IP which combats with unfair competition and increase quality standards it plays a
crucial role in providing legal protection to the product which prevents unauthorized use of it and
helps in preserving cultural identity, promotes economic prosperity of producers and it also
builds trust among consumers with respect to the origin and authenticity of these products.

GI has evolved far from just being restricted to wines and spirits nowadays GI available for
handicrafts, agricultural and food products, etc. The TRIPS provide minimum standards for the
protection of GIs but do not oblige the members to grant automatic protection of foreign GIs on
their territory. As a result, the procedures for registration of GIs vary from country to country,
which creates an additional administrative burden on the businesses willing to protect their
products from unfair competition on the foreign markets.

To overcome this country moved to protect their GIs through bilateral agreements and the EU is
the most active country among all. EU quality schemes aims at protecting the names of specific
products in order to promote their unique characteristics, linked to their geographical origin as
well as traditional know-how.  Which such bi-lateral agreements the market for EU geographical
indications is around €74.8 billion, and together they account for 15.4% of total EU food and
drinks exports.

On 6th November 2019 EU and China had a bilateral agreement to protect 100 European
Geographical Indications in China and 100 Chinese Geographical Indications in the EU against
imitations and usurpation. The agreement is expected to enter into force before the end of 2020.
After four years, the scope of the agreement will expand to cover an additional 175 GI names
from both sides. EU-China cooperation on Geographical Indications began over 10 years ago
(2006) resulting in the registration and protection of 10 Geographical Indication names on both
sides in 2012. It is a win - win situation for both sides in respect of their trade as this will help
them build trust in their consumers. The producers of GI will get international recognition and a
high level of quality will be maintained by them. Plus, it would create brand awareness among
the public of both nations.

With this agreement Chinese products have the right to use the official certification mark of the
EU, making it easier for companies to export relevant products to Europe.

Negotiations for a free trade pact, formally called a broad-based trade and investment agreement
(BTIA), between the EU and India started in 2007 but were unofficially suspended in 2013 when
both sides realized that no movement was happening on contentious matters. Since then, periodic
efforts have been made to resume talks, but there have been no positive results.

India is in dire need to give attention to subjects such as GI to uplift its slow economy. GI can be
beneficiary tool in reviving the Indian economy. This bilateral agreement will not only help in increasing
the trade of the country but would also be a beneficiary in protecting producers and stop illegal copying.
Since the producers of GI are neither well off nor educated enough to choose the correct platform with
these agreements the government can provide them international as well as protected platform. Producers
can get to know their effective marketing and protection requires quality assurance, brand creation, post-
sale consumer feedback, and support, prosecuting unauthorized copiers, etc. Therefore, the registration is
only step one. They need protection first at the domestic level and then at an international level. Products
such as Darjeeling tea, which has an expansive export market, international protection is of crucial
importance.

The protection of Gi is not only limited to products but also the traditional knowledge and
culture of a country.
Since many Indian GI products relate to textile and tea which are largely exported to EU
countries there is merit in negotiating to implement equal treatment for Indian GI products. EU is
still India’s largest trading partner. Accounting for €92 billion worth of trade in goods in 2018 or
12.9% of total Indian trade, ahead of China (10.9%) and the USA (10.1%) leading destination for
Indian exports (almost 18% of the total). Trade- in goods between the EU and India increased by
72% in the last decade.1
1
Official website of European commission https://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-
regions/countries/india/
Therefore, to maintain these trade relations without exploitation of producers the bilateral
agreement should be adopted by developing countries like India also.