The ‘Atreyapuram Pootharekulu’, a sweet made of rice and jaggery, has received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
The entry into the Geographical Indications Registry (GIR) mandates that the production of the sweet be confined only to the Atreyapuram village on the banks of the Godavari in Konaseema district of Andhra Pradesh.
On June 14, the GIR, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, had registered ‘Pootharekulu’ sweet variety under the ‘Food’ category, as the four-month statutory period to challenge the claims by the applicant expired by then.
How is it prepared
Coarse rice is made into a batter. A cloth is then dipped in the batter and put on a hot inverted pot to make edible thin films called ‘poothareku’, which is then stuffed with jaggery powder and cashew and rolled to make a sweet.
“At least 400 women of Atreyapuram are into the activity in the village. Situated on the banks of the Godavari, the village has the history of making the sweet for over three centuries,” claimed the Sir Arthur Cotton Atreyapuram Putharekula Manufacturers’ Welfare Association (SACAPMWA) in its application for the GI tag.
As per the official website of the GIR, the ‘Atreyapuram Pootharekulu’ (Certificate No. 483) was registered on June 14 with a validity of up to December 2031.
“The credit goes to the women of the village. Their skill in making the delicacy has brought laurels to the village and fame to the Konaseema region, apart from generating employment to scores of villagers,” SACAPMWA treasurer Gadiraju Prasada Raju told The Hindu.
“Rice is the main ingredient. We prefer the MTU-3626 paddy variety for its taste and adhesive feature,” Mr. Prasada Raju said.
The MTU-3626 variety is locally known as ‘Bondalu’, which is extensively grown in the Konaseema region and consumed in Kerala.
The Centre for Intellectual Property Rights & Technology of the Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University (DSNLU), Visakhapatnam, had extended its support to the association in the application and documentation for the GI tag.
