UNB, Dhaka :
Jamdani, one of the finest Muslin textiles, has been loved by Bengali women for centuries for the beautiful sarees it make.
Historically, it belongs to Dhaka, but not yet legally. A year after Bangladesh enacted a law to provide geographical identity to it historical products Jamdani has yet to be registered as a geographical indicative product (GI) for lack of rules to consolidate the legal, a researcher said.
The law, Geographical Indicative Products (Registration and Protection) Act 2013, has not been followed by framing of rules.
“There are no rules yet. So, we could not register Jamdani as GI product under the act,” researcher Dr Iftekhar Iqbal told UNB on Monday.
He said, the government has to create a legal base by formulating the rules to register the GI products, including Jamdani sarees, under the act.
“Through studies we’ve
established that Jamdani is our product. So, steps should be taken to register it as a GI product.”
Iftekhar Iqbal, a teacher of history at the Dhaka University, conducted the study, titled ‘Protection of Jamdani as a Geographical Indication in Bangladesh’ from September to December in 2013.
The study has found that Jamdani originated in Dhaka while the ecological context of production of cotton and finished Jamadni products are unique in the Dhaka region.
Considering all the historical, geographical, commercial and cultural contexts of Jamdani, the study suggests that Dhaka was and still is its only true centre of production.
India registered Jamdani as Uppada Jamdani Sarees from Andhra Pradesh in 2009. But, UNESCO has recently recognised Jamdani as a Bangladeshi ‘intangible cultural heritage of humanity’.
However, the study has shown that there is no combination of geographical, ecological, historical or commercial conditions elsewhere in the world except Dhaka where Jamdani can be produced and traded on a vast scale, both nationally and internationally.
The brand name of Jamdani was first applied around mid-16th century or perhaps earlier.
Presenting historical and cultural evidences, the study claims that Jamdani has become a part of national culture and heritage of Bangladesh and such long-term cultural and historical continuity of Jamdani is not matched anywhere else in the world.
