Odisha government to apply for GI tag for ‘Jagannath Rasagola’

The Odisha government has decided to apply for Geographical Indication (GI) tag for ‘Jagannath Rasagola’ instead of ‘Odishara Rasagola’, said an official on Tuesday.

The Odisha government is mulling applying for geographical indication registration for the Rasagola associated with Shree Jagannath Temple at Puri, as it will be easier to support the application with historical evidence.

The West Bengal and Odisha variants of the sweet are different in colour, texture, taste, juice content and method of preparation. The ‘Odishara Rasagola’ is softer and light brown in colour, whereas the Bangalar Rasogolla is white or off-white. The syrup used in both the variants is also different.

The Odisha government had sought opinions of two top law firms having rich experience in handling patent cases.

Basing on their opinion, the State Industries Department has made up its mind in favour of the Rasagola associated with Shree Jagannath Temple. The State government realised that ‘Pahala Rasagola’, which is produced in a village near Bhubaneswar, does not have enough historical evidence to support it as is available in case of the ‘Jagannath Rasagola’.

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