Indian government constituted a thinktank to draft a national IPR policy
The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion in the Ministry of Industry & Commerce, Government of India (DIPP) has constituted a think tank on Intellectual Property Rights to draft a national IPR policy and advise the government on a range of IPR related issues.
The think tank will highlight anomalies in the present IPR legislations and advise possible solutions to the Government. The six-member panel will be headed by Justice Prabha Sridevan, former Chairperson of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board and retired judge of the Madras High Court. The panel will also give its views on possible implications of demands placed by negotiating partner countries. This assumes significance especially since India and the US are trying to find a common ground on the prickly IPR issues in the working group to be set up under the bilateral trade policy forum.
India’s IPR policies have come under attack from the US, with the latter picking holes and launching an out-of-cycle review of the country’s patents regime to protect innovation even as India maintains that its laws are in compliance with the TRIPS. The think tank will identify areas in IPR where study needs to be conducted and give recommendations to the Ministry. In addition, it will regularly update the Government about the developments in IPR cases that have a bearing on India’s IPR policy.
The panel will also prepare periodic reports on best practices followed in other countries. DIPP will hold an inter-ministerial meeting next week to form a holistic policy on IPR. About eight Ministries, including that of Commerce, Health, Information and Broadcasting, and Telecommunication, will give recommendations on the framework for IPR policy that will also outline a strategy for commercialization of patents.
The Government’s formation of this think tank to draft a national policy on IPR is a welcome move. It is absolutely essential that India should have a strong policy to protect the inventions generated in India.