Odisha, Bengal rasagola war heading for court battle

Bhubaneswar: Odisha and neighbouring state West Bengal are again set to lock horns over rasagola as the matter is heading to court to decide its origin.

The West Bengal government is contemplating to put up the case in the court over the origin of the spongy sweetmeat.

Bengal’s Food Processing Minister Abdur Rezzak Mollah told Hindustan Times: “Bengal is the origin of rosogolla… We have decided to move court. Let the court decide. We will pursue the matter till the very end.”

Quoting an official of the Bengal government, the report stated that court petition will be filed in tandem with an application for Geographical Indication (GI) recognition to cement the origin debate.

The report has renewed the bitter tug of war between the two states.

While Odisha stakes its claim over the mouth-watering delicacy, the Bengal government claims rasagola was invented by Nabin Chandra Das in 1868.

Also Read: Rasagola existed in Odisha before 8th century!

Worth mentioning, Odisha government this August recommended Central Tool Room & Training Centre (CTTC) to make documents ready required for processing the application to claim that dessert has its origin in Odisha, prior to setting up an eight-member committee headed by Industry Director Niranjan Sahoo.

Earlier, Odisha government had asked its Science and Technology department to apply for the patent as well as the GI tag for the syrupy delicacy. A committee set by the department conducted thorough research on origin of Rasagola and finally concluded that the sweet had its origins in Odisha. The research cited that Rasagola existed in Odisha since 15th-16th century as it has been mentioned in the ‘Dandee Ramayana’. Despite historical proof and evidence about origin of Rasagola, the state government did not precede further to stake the claim that sweet had its origin in Odisha.

Eminent Jagannath cult scholar Asit Mohanty has already submitted a 100-page report claiming that the confection originated in Odisha. In the report to the state government, he contended that the sweet’s reference was found in Dandi Ramayana, a version of the epic adapted by Balaram Das in the 16th century.

The report claimed that the sweet was being offered to gods in mutts and temples for over 600 years.

Since last couple of years, traders in Odisha have been celebrating Rasagola Dibasa on auspicious occasion of Niladri Bije of Lord Jagannath. This year too, the occasion was celebrated as we had reported here.