Promotion of basmati urged

KARACHI: The SME Farmers Association of Pakistan (SMEFA) in a meeting urged the institutions concerned to take prompt measures for the protection and promotion of basmati in and outside Pakistan, and also all international forums without any further loss of time, a statement said on Tuesday. Haji Muhammad Saeed, chairman of SMEFA, said basmati is our heritage and indeed a gift from the Almighty Allah.

Pakistan’s basmati fully qualifies and by virtue of its merits of coming under the geographical radius and inheriting the characteristics and features deserves the geographical indications (GI) tag, he said.

Saeed urged the ministries of agriculture, commerce and the Intellectual Property Organization (IPO), the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority ( SMEDA), Trade Mark's Registry, rice exporters, growers, millers and processors to join hands with the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) to protect and promote the basmati and make sure our rights to its ownership and GI tag are not infringed.