New Delhi, Jan 23 (IANS): In a thrust to the intellectual property rights (IPR) ecosystem in the country, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, has set a target of 10,000 Geographical Indication (GI) tags by 2030.

The target will be achieved through a whole of government approach, and the government will constitute a committee to oversee the progress, said the minister.

The number of GI tags issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) stands at 605 to date.

The number of authorised users for GI tags increased from 365 to 29,000 and the number of patents granted increased from 6,000 to 100,000 in the last 10 years.

Stressing on the idea of ‘Vikas bhi aur Virasat bhi’ given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Union Minister highlighted the constant efforts of the Prime Minister, including mentioning of various products in his ‘Mann ki Baat’ radio programme.

Goyal also mentioned the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Fund (ANRFF) and One District One Product (ODOP) scheme, hailing the efforts of Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra state governments in promoting GI products.

“The government also increased the manpower strength of the DPIIT and the whole process has been made online in a time-bound manner,” added the Minister.

Goyal stressed on the need for better branding of GI products. He mentioned the need for collaboration with the FSSAI and BIS for ensuring better quality standards. This will also help to address the issue of counterfeit products.

The minister spoke about the potential collaboration with private sector and government organisations like railways and airports.

Goyal suggested the possibility of having GI tagged products listed on GeM platform, ONDC portal and even e-commerce platforms.

The GI products can be showcased by Indian embassies abroad, similar to ODOP products and can unlock the export potential for this sector.