The Ambaji White Marble (AWM), famous for its use in religious architecture since ancient times, and now for its use in residences, has got geographical indications (GI) tag by the Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and TradeMarks (CGPDTM).
Mined since the early medieval period from Ambaji of Danta Taluka in Banaskantha district of Gujarat, this marble is one of the most popular marbles in India.
The inherent qualities of AWM can be summed up by uniform and closely packed fine grains setting its benchmark for quality and classifications.
It’s to be noted that Ambaji is famous for its white marble as it has the maximum whiteness in the range of 95.80 – 96.30 percent. The white marble of Ambaji constitutes silicon oxide, calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, iron oxide, aluminium oxide, and mainly calcium oxide.
The Intellectual Property (IP) facilitation centre of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), set by the Ministry of MSME, government of India facilitated in gaining the GI tag.
Moreover, the Stone Artisan Park Training Institute (SAPTI), Gujarat government’s Commissioner of Geology and Mining, Industries and Mines department, and Banaskantha Collectorate, were the nodal state government bodies involved in gaining the GI tag.
The GI tagging not only secures the legal rights of the artisans and others but also assists in uplifting the livelihood of this region. Around 200 micro, small, medium enterprises (MSMEs) are heavily dependent upon the products of AWM, said a government official.
Source: www.ahmedabadmirror.com
