CHENNAI : Cheering up the citizens of Srivilliputtur in Virudhunagar district with a sweet news, the Geographical Indication Registry of India, Chennai, has approved Geographical Indication tag for the delicious ‘Srivilliputtur palkova’. The certificate will be issued on Tuesday to the Srivilliputtur Co-operative Milk Producers’ Society in Virudhunagar, said Chinnaraja G Naidu, Deputy Registrar of the Registry, Chennai.
The petition for the Geographical Indication tag was filed by one Sanjai Gandhi in 2014 for the society, and after careful scrutiny, the application was accepted and published in the journal last year. The petition also said that the ‘Srivilliputtur palkova’ is a traditional milk product made in the town, highly popular across the State. The town is also famous for Sri Aandal temple and the temple’s gateway tower is the official symbol of the Tamil Nadu government, the application said.
The members of the age-old society have been making the sweet for more than sixty years. A large number of small private dairy units and entrepreneurs are also producing and marketing the Srivilliputtur palkova. The society provides employment opportunities to a large number of residents.
The origin of the ‘Srivilliputtur palkova’ can be traced to the 1940s. In 1945, the co-operative societies, established by the government, took up palkova-making on a large scale, using a special skill that was already known to the people of Srivilliputtur.
The climatic conditions of Srivilliputtur promote the growth of a variety of crops, which are later used as fodder for the livestock. The fodder intake of cows at Srivilliputtur and their rich grazing habit give a unique and a high-quality flavour to the milk and this is reflected in the making of ‘palkova’. It is naturally sweet and therefore only less amount of sugar is added to prepare it. The uniqueness of the ‘Srivilliputtur palkova’ comes from the milk produced in Srivilliputtur.
The petition also said that there is a close nexus between the manufacturers of ‘Srivilliputtur palkova’ and the milk co-operatives in the Srivilliputtur region. The white revolution in the country also helped the society to popularise the product and development of the business.