GI filings in India jump by 380 percent over five-year period
15 August 2025
Credit by BUSINESSDAY
Aishwarya Menon | partner @ K&S Partners, Gurugram
The number of filings for geographical indications (GIs) in India jumped by 380 percent over the last five years, the biggest increase among IP filings in the jurisdiction during the period, as reported by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
In 2020-21, only 57 GI applications were filed. The number increased to 116 in 2021-22 and further ballooned to 210 in 2022-23. However, total filings plummeted to 134 in 2023-24 but recovered to reach 274 applications in 2024-25.
According to Aishwarya Menon, partner at K&S Partners in Gurugram, the Indian government has been significantly promoting GIs. “The government’s focus on GIs was highlighted during one such promotional event called ‘GI Samagam’ in early 2025, where the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Piyush Goyal, shared that India aimed to obtain 10,000 GI tags by 2030. These are certainly impressive numbers for GIs. However, I would urge the government to build on this and also work on further strengthening the GI law so that the Indian GI owners also reap the economic and social benefits of such protection,” said Menon.
Overall IP filings increased by 44 percent during the same period – from 477,533 in 2020-21 to 689,991 in 2024-25.
Several factors accounted for this increase: growth of the Indian economy, now the fourth largest in the world; more awareness programmes and promotional events, such as the National IP Awards organized by the government to encourage and recognize IP creators; and government benefits for startups and small- and medium-sized enterprises, including reduced official fees and fast-tracking of startup patent applications.
Over the past five years, filings for designs posted the second-biggest increase at 266 percent, followed by patents at 180 percent, copyright at 83 percent, trademarks at 28 percent and semiconductor integrated circuits layout-designs at 20 percent.
“In any event, given all the reasons listed above, it is certainly likely that IP filings in India are likely to continue on an upward trajectory in the coming future,” said Menon.
- Espie Angelica A. de Leon
