West Bengal Government plans to get GI tag for traditional Bengali sweets

KOLKATA: Bengal is known for its sweets and those sweets are all set to get geographical identification (GI) certification. The West Bengal Government is planning to get what is popularly known as GI tag, for traditional sweets of the state with an intention to protect them getting imitated and also for using them for export.

Joynogor Moa has already got itself the GI tag and certifications for three other sweets have been applied for. The other sweets that have been shortlisted for a GI tag are ‘sarpuria’ of Krishnanagar, and ‘sitabhog’ and ‘mihidana’ of Bardhaman.

While ‘Joynagarer moa’ is made of puffed rice and date palm jaggery in Joynagar, South 24-Parganas district, sarpuria, made from milk cream, is made in Krishnanagar, Nadia district. Sitabhog and mihidana are rice-based sweets of Bardhaman.

The government also has plans to export sweets from the State in the future and the GI tags would be of immense help in that endeavour.

Post the GI tagging, packing of these sweets would also be taken care of, to increase their shelft life for purposes of export, as most of these sweets are made of chenna (cottage cheese).