A Critical Examination of the Legal and Institutional Barriers to Enforcing Geographical Indications in India: Evaluating Compliance with the TRIPS Agreement and the Role of Regulatory Bodies.

  • Unique Paper ID: 201806
  • Volume: 12
  • Issue: 12
  • PageNo: 4725-4739
  • Abstract:
  • Geographical indications (GI) are a unique kind of intellectual property which have become a key source for protecting traditional knowledge, cultural heritage and rural economies. With the onset of globalization and increasing competitive pressures in the market place, GI has been viewed as an important mechanism in Indian law for protecting the distinctive identity of certain regional products. The present dissertation "Evaluating the TRIPS Compliance and Enforcement Gaps in India’s GI Regime" is a doctrinal and analytical examination of the legal framework of GIs in India in relation to its compliance with the TRIPS Agreement and the enforcement problems encountered by the regulatory authorities. Chapter 1, provides the problem statement, objectives and research questions and discusses the significance of this research. The second chapter of the paper is an exposition of the literature review and how this research fits into the larger context of academia. The challenges associated with protecting GI in India, in terms of law, culture, and economics, have been highlighted in this chapter. Additionally, it sheds light on how India has been keeping up with its commitments to the TRIPS agreement and the interplay between the local indigenous system and GI protection. This chapter also provides details of the research methods used in the study. The third chapter focuses on the legislative provisions and analyzes the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. It has also discussed the provisions of the Act, the judgments of the Indian courts regarding it, and whether India's legal system complies with Article 22 to Article 24 of TRIPS. It also highlights some positive points and some negative aspects of this aspect of the legal system. The fourth chapter will cover the institutional challenges and limitations that come in the way of TRIPS compliance. Chapter 5 examines through comparative analysis the following famous GIs from India: Darjeeling Tea, Pochampally Ikat, Alphonso Mango, Mysore Sandalwood, and Banarasi Silk. Their performance is reviewed using criteria such as legislative support, TRIPS compliance, institutional backing, market penetration, and socio-economic implications. Discrepancies in enforcement, differences in producer awareness, and shortcomings in worldwide protection and promotion become apparent throughout the investigation of these GIs. Chapter 5 provides an insightful review of the functioning of the Indian GI system in different industrial sectors. The concluding Chapter 6 presents the results of the study, emphasizing critical legal and institutional impediments, assessing India's compliance with the TRIPS Agreement, and evaluating the efficacy of the GI enforcement mechanism. Legal recommendations for improvement are proposed, including reforms of regulatory bodies, enhancing producer awareness and access, increasing international collaboration, and aligning the GI protection regime with the SDGs. Finally, areas of further research are outlined within the dynamic field of GI law and governance.

Copyright & License

Copyright © 2026 Authors retain the copyright of this article. This article is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

BibTeX

@article{201806,
        author = {Tejas Kumar Singh},
        title = {A Critical Examination of the Legal and Institutional Barriers to Enforcing Geographical Indications in India: Evaluating Compliance with the TRIPS Agreement and the Role of Regulatory Bodies.},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {12},
        number = {12},
        pages = {4725-4739},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=201806},
        abstract = {Geographical indications (GI) are a unique kind of intellectual property which have become a key source for protecting traditional knowledge, cultural heritage and rural economies. With the onset of globalization and increasing competitive pressures in the market place, GI has been viewed as an important mechanism in Indian law for protecting the distinctive identity of certain regional products. The present dissertation "Evaluating the TRIPS Compliance and Enforcement Gaps in India’s GI Regime" is a doctrinal and analytical examination of the legal framework of GIs in India in relation to its compliance with the TRIPS Agreement and the enforcement problems encountered by the regulatory authorities.
Chapter 1, provides the problem statement, objectives and research questions and discusses the significance of this research.
The second chapter of the paper is an exposition of the literature review and how this research fits into the larger context of academia. The challenges associated with protecting GI in India, in terms of law, culture, and economics, have been highlighted in this chapter. Additionally, it sheds light on how India has been keeping up with its commitments to the TRIPS agreement and the interplay between the local indigenous system and GI protection. This chapter also provides details of the research methods used in the study.
The third chapter focuses on the legislative provisions and analyzes the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. It has also discussed the provisions of the Act, the judgments of the Indian courts regarding it, and whether India's legal system complies with Article 22 to Article 24 of TRIPS. It also highlights some positive points and some negative aspects of this aspect of the legal system. The fourth chapter will cover the institutional challenges and limitations that come in the way of TRIPS compliance.
Chapter 5 examines through comparative analysis the following famous GIs from India: Darjeeling Tea, Pochampally Ikat, Alphonso Mango, Mysore Sandalwood, and Banarasi Silk. Their performance is reviewed using criteria such as legislative support, TRIPS compliance, institutional backing, market penetration, and socio-economic implications. Discrepancies in enforcement, differences in producer awareness, and shortcomings in worldwide protection and promotion become apparent throughout the investigation of these GIs. Chapter 5 provides an insightful review of the functioning of the Indian GI system in different industrial sectors.
The concluding Chapter 6 presents the results of the study, emphasizing critical legal and institutional impediments, assessing India's compliance with the TRIPS Agreement, and evaluating the efficacy of the GI enforcement mechanism. Legal recommendations for improvement are proposed, including reforms of regulatory bodies, enhancing producer awareness and access, increasing international collaboration, and aligning the GI protection regime with the SDGs. Finally, areas of further research are outlined within the dynamic field of GI law and governance.},
        keywords = {},
        month = {May},
        }

Cite This Article

Singh, T. K. (2026). A Critical Examination of the Legal and Institutional Barriers to Enforcing Geographical Indications in India: Evaluating Compliance with the TRIPS Agreement and the Role of Regulatory Bodies.. International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology (IJIRT), 12(12), 4725–4739.

Related Articles