New Delhi, June 22 (KNN) In a bid to protect the Khadi trademark, the Khadi and Village Industries Commission has sent legal notices to more than 200 entities including Fabindia asking them not to use terms such as ‘handwoven’, ‘handspun’ and ‘woven in handlooms’ without its prior permission.

For using the specific features of Khadi made products and the word Khadi, KVIC wants the entities to pay for the right to use the terms when describing their products as KVIC has the sole authority for providing Khadi mark registration.

In this regard, KVIC Chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena said “Khadi is handwoven, khadi is handspun and khadi is also woven in handloom.”

He said that this move has been taken to protect customers and rural artisans whose employment opportunities are at risk by checking the growing sale of spurious khadi and non khadi products.

He said that the drive is aimed to stop the sale of spurious khadi in which many private organizations are involved and using words handwoven, handspun, woven in handloom to fool customers that the fabric being sold by them is khadi.

While in against of this move taken by government agency many companies and lobby groups said ‘handwoven’ and other terms are generic and cover a broad spectrum.