MUMBAI, Dec. 7 -- Alphonso, or Hapus, mango growers along Maharashtra's Konkan coast have been an embittered lot since they learnt that a coastal district in south Gujarat is looking to share their light. Alphonso, celebrated as the 'king of mangoes' from the Konkan belt, received the Geographical Indication (GI) in 2018. On Saturday, the mango war received political heft, even as it exacerbated the anxieties of mango growers, when Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar tweeted that two universities from Gujarat -- Navsari Agricultural University and Gandhinagar University - have sought the same recognition for the Valsad Hapus. According to Pawar, the Gujarat universities applied for GI tag for the Valsadi Hapus, a distinct variety of mangoes, under the 'One District One Product' initiative in 2023. "They want the Navsari and Valsad to be included as part of Konkan region, given their geographical alignment with the coastal Sahyadri region along the Konkan coast," states a letter written by BJP MP from Valsad Dhaval Patel to union minister of commerce and industry Piyush Goyal in March this year. In his post on X, Pawar urged the government to intervene as "there is a threat to the recognition of Konkan Hapus". He added: "Hapus from Konkan is in demand across the world, and the farmers here have protected it with great effort. Hapus is their livelihood. The largest economic turnover in Konkan happens through Hapus mangoes." Ajeet Gogate, founder president, Devgad Taluka Mango Growers Cooperative Societies Limited (DTMGCSL), in Jamsande, Sindhudurg district, said while farmers are not opposed to Valsad claiming a GI tag for its produce, they are objecting to the claim over the name 'Hapus'. "They can ask for any other name, for instance, 'Valsad mango'; why do they want it to be recognized as 'Hapus'," asked Gogate. He said this will impact the identity and equity of the Konkan produce. "We have to see if the application to the Geographical Indication registry has come for final hearings, following which we will intervene. We will also write to the state government seeking intervention as the matter is related to the livelihood of Konkan farmers," Gogate emphasised. DTMGCSL is the first cooperative body for mangoes in Konkan formed in 1987. The body along with Konkan Hapus Mango Growers and Sellers Cooperative Society Limited (KHMGSCSL), Ratnagiri, Dr Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Agricultural University (BSKAU), Dapoli, and Kelshi Area Mango Growers Cooperative Union Limited (KAMGCUL), Dapoli, are custodians of the GI tag. Carrying forward Gogate's argument, Dr Vivek Bhide, president, KHMGSCSL, said: "This is not an isolated case, we have opposed several such attempts in the past. The first such demand was made in Junnar for Shivneri Hapus. They are not supposed to use the name Hapus for their mangoes as the GI tag is only for Konkan Hapus. The name has a great value in the market, and hence the clamour for it." 2,200 mango growers from Konkan are officially allowed to use GI tag for selling Hapus. Meanwhile, following Pawar's tweet, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve said, "The demand for Hapus covers all the countries of the world. It is the pride of Maharashtra and the country, which they now claim belongs to Gujarat. They want to start something new over Hapus but the world knows who Hapus belongs to." Senior Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar termed it as a beginning of claiming Mumbai as a part of Gujarat. "They are projecting Gujarat in a manner as if everything in this country has started moving around it. Tomorrow, they can claim that the country got Independence because of Gujarat." Shiv Sena minister Uday Samant, who belongs to Konkan, however soft-peddled the matter, stating Maharashtra's Hapus will not be impacted by Gujarat's claim. "Do you believe the demand for GI tag for the Valsad mango will take over the taste of Devgad or Ratnagiri Hapus," he asked. "Let Valsad or Karnataka Hapus step into competition; no other mango can compete with the Devgad and Ratnagiri varieties."...