UN food & culture heritage tag for Bengal’s aromatic rice

Kolkata: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday tweeted that the United Nations has recognised Bengal's famed Gobindbhog, Tulaipanji and Kanakchur aromatic rice as food and culture heritage.Earlier, Unesco, an arm of the UN, had recognised Durga Puja of Kolkata as intangible cultural heritage of humanity. The festival got the recognition for its inclusive and public nature, which transcends the caste-class barrier and functions as a collaborative art festival and a significant creative economy.
Banerjee said that besides the aromatic rice varieties, the UN awarded an internationally valued certificate to Bengal for community initiatives in the ‘Matir Srishti' programme, which was launched in 2020 and aims to grow crops in non-fertile land.Gobindbhog and Tulaipanji varieties have already got the GI (geographical indication) tag."We are proud to share that the United Nations recognised our initiative yet again. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN awarded an internationally valued certificate to us for our community initiatives in our innovative ‘Matir Srishti' programme, which we launched in 2020 in our dry western (Paschimanchal) districts. Now, this creative and multi-departmental concept received UN recognition as a worthy community initiative in the category of preservation of natural heritage and biodiversity," the chief minister wrote on her X handle.She pointed out that the ‘Matir Srishti' initiative has crafted a unique vision that integrates strategies linked to land, irrigation and panchayats. The aim is to make barren, non-arable and mono-crop land fertile for growing multiple crops. Additional irrigation facilities have been created and lakhs of livelihood opportunities generated under the ‘Matir Srishti' initiative.Commenting on the recognition of the aromatic rice varieties, Banerjee wrote on her X handle, "I am further happy to inform that the United Nations (FAO) also recognised West Bengal's famed Gobindbhog, Tulaipanji and Kanakchur aromatic rice as food and culture heritage. I am sharing Certificates of Recognition received from the Director General of FAO of the United Nations. UN-FAO recognition of these initiatives is a prestigious honour for globally recognised good works to conserve natural heritage, biodiversity and food and culture heritage. We dedicate this recognition to our entire rural community, especially the farmers of Bengal."