West Bengal and Odisha Battle Over the Invention of 'Rasgulla'

West government is taking steps for formally staking claim to 'Rasogolla' as the state's invention
through the GI route at a time when the famous sweetmeat finds itself at the centre of a debate as to where it originated. Odisha has claimed that Rasogolla originated from the Jagannath Temple in Puri, where it is a part of the religious rituals, and has been a part of the same since the 12th century.GI authentication is a name or sign used on certain products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g. a town, region, or country) which may act as a certification that the product possesses certain qualities, is made according to traditional methods, or enjoys a certain reputation, due to its geographical origin.The Science and Technology department of the state government has started the process to approach its central counterpart for GI authentication of Rasogolla so that it is identified with Bengal. Jagannath Ghosh, spokesman of 'Paschim Bango Mistanno Byabsayee Samity' and owner of a famous North Kolkata sweet shop, said that the same conveyed to their delegation by Minister of State for Women and Child Welfare Sashi Panja.(Did Kadir Nurman really invent the doner kebab?)When question, the minister replied "Our Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has asked us to do the needful for ensuring that Bengal gets its rightful place as inventor of Rasogolla. Since Nabin Chandra Das had introduced the sweet in 1868, it is high time we don't allow others to hijack our heritage."(How to Make Rasgulla at Home)Director of K C Das Private Ltd, Sanjoy Das, the fifth generation descendant of Navin Chandra Das family, clarified that it was historically known that the Das family had been the pioneer of Rasogolla, made from cottage cheese and dipped in a sugary syrup.(The Vietnamese Pho War - Can You Trademark a Soup?)"With Rasogolla getting the legal seal of having originated from the city, the sweet can be showcased globally and there can be more R&D initiatives," Sanjoy Das said. "On our part we had introduced automated machines at our Baghbazar plant from the day of hand-operated coal-guzzling boiler in 1868 introduced by Navin Chandra Das and in use for years."But if there is a formal recognition of Rosogolla having originated from Bengal, we can go for patents also in future," he said on the sidelines of the launch of the book 'Rasogolla banglar jagat matano abiskar' (Rasogolla, the conqueror of world from Bengal) by a well known academician.(No More Fake Tequila or Parmigiano: Food Origins Get New Protection)Sanjoy Das, whose shop K C Das is one of the leading sweet chains of the country, said there were plans to turn parts of the Rasogolla Bhavan, set up in early last century in North Kolkata, into a memorial where the history and evolution of Bengal's famous sweets would be depicted and the primitive tools like the boiler would be preserved for research purpose "to let the young generation know about our heritage".(Who Invented the Dal Makhani?)Panja responded, "If there is any formal proposal on their part, we will consider. The entire North Kolkata is dotted with heritage places and our Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee always works towards preserving our heritage - buildings, artworks, even sweets -- everything. We have no fight with Odisha. Everyone knows Rasogolla is Bengal's product like Odisha's indigenous sweet is
Chhanapora," Das said.