A Kashmir Willow bat rewrites the story for GI tags for India

This week, at the World Intellectual Property Day celebrations in New Delhi, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal held up an unusual GI-certified product — the Kashmir Willow cricket bat, made from willow trees in Anantnag, Pulwama, Baramulla and Bijbehara. It earned its GI tag in 2025, part of a batch of eight new Kashmiri products that took the Valley’s GI count to 15. Goyal then announced a three-year zero-fee News Source: The Week waiver on all sports-related IP filings — trademarks, copyrights, patents, designs, traditional knowledge and GIs. India’s GI register has long been associated with heritage and craft It now stretches into daily life: Bikaneri Bhujia in the snack tin, Kolhapuri chappals at the doorstep, Mysore Sandal soap in the bathroom, Tirupati laddu at the temple counter, Goa Feni in the glass — and now a willow cricket bat on the field.