Mayurbhanj’s red ant chutney receives GI tag. Why this is important for nutritional security of tribals

Mayurbhanj’s red ant chutney receives GI tag. Why this is important for nutritional security of tribals

Subject: Environment

Section: Species in news

In the news:

• Similipal kai chutney, made with red weaver ants by tribal people in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district, received the geographical identity tag.

Details:

• The Mayurbhanj Kai Society Ltd applied in 2020 under the Geographical Indications of Goods Act, of 1999.
• Scientists analyzed the red weaver ants, revealing nutritional benefits like proteins, vitamins, and minerals.

Similipal kai chutney:

• Ants are gathered, cleaned, and mixed with ingredients like salt, ginger, garlic, and chillies to make the chutney. Additionally, they’re used in soups and consumed as a functional ingredient for health issues.
• Consumption is linked to improved appetite, eyesight, brain health, and natural remedies against depression, fatigue, and memory loss.
• Kai pimpudi is used in medicinal oil for rheumatism, gout, etc. It’s also consumed for health benefits, aiding immunity and disease prevention.
• Indigenous people collect kai pimpudi (red weaver ants) from nearby forests, selling them and the chutney at high demand and profitable rates.

Kai pimpudi (Red weaver ants):

• Red weaver ants create nests in trees, forming colonies with various nests, providing protection, and serving as bio-control agents against pests.

Legal Framework:

• Geographical indications assign products to the place of their origin. It conveys an assurance of quality and distinctiveness for such goods.
• Under Articles 1 (2) and 10 of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, geographical indications are covered as an element of Intellectual Property Rights.
• They are also covered under Articles 22-24 of the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.

How does a GI tag affect the community based dish?

A Geographical Indications (GI) tag will help put the savoury dish to the global food table. The tag will bring about the uniqueness in the dish’s identity- meaning- it will be recognised as the one dish found in a particular country.

This will patent Kai Chutney and therefore make it harder for anyone else to misuse the identity of kai or mislead customers.

Simlipal National Park:

• Simlipal is a tiger reserve in the Mayurbhanj district in the Odisha.
• It is part of the Mayurbhanj Elephant Reserve, which includes three protected areas –Similipal Tiger Reserve, Hadgarh Wildlife Sanctuary and Kuldiha Wildlife Sanctuary.
• It derives its name from the abundance of red silk cotton trees growing in the area.
• The vast terrain of Similipal with wide altitudinal, climatic and topographic variations, criss-crossed by a large number of perennial streams, harbours a unique blend of Western Ghats, Eastern Ghats and Sub-Himalayan plant species.
• The floristic composition indicates a connecting link between South Indian and North Eastern Sub-Himalayan Specie
• Forest is predominantly moist mixed deciduous forest with tropical semi-evergreen forest in areas with suitable microclimatic conditions and sporadic patches of dry deciduous forests and grasslands. It forms the largest watershed of northern Odisha.
• It holds the highest tiger population in Odisha and harbours the only population of melanistic tigers in the world.
• Other carnivores found here are leopards, leopard cats, fishing cats, jungle cats and wolves. The active management of muggers has revived its population on the banks of the rivers Khairi and Deo.
• It is also home to the largest population of elephants in Odisha.
• This protected area has been part of the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves since 2009.

Source: DTE