Essay on “Intellectual Property Rights-Patents” Complete Essay for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.

Intellectual Property Rights-Patents

Intellectual property rights has assumed wide significance over the years. Many problems have started cropping over the patent issue. Few disputes and controversies have surrounded awkward trade related intellectual property rights. All the disputes related to trade related Intellectual Property Rights are solved at World Trade Organization (WTO). Recently India won turmeric patent case. But India failed in challenging the neem patent case.

Intellectual property rights are the rights of persons who have invented or created something unique in different fields. It protects the commercial interests on inventors. Others who want to use those inventions have to pay. This is patenting and patenting is done for certain years. Intellectual property rights cover patents, copy rights, trademarks, industrial design. Patent laws in India permit only process patents for drug, food, medicine and chemical inventions for a period of seven years. In India product patents are not permitted and all other inventions can be patented for 20 years. They have pressurized India to adopt the product patents and patents for 20 years. Similary, the WTO wants product patents for all inventions for a period of 20 years.

As a part of the WTO agreement, India was required to bring her laws and regulations into conformity with her obligations under the agreement. Naturally it was required to amend the Patent Act, 1970 in accordance with the provisions of the WTO agreement. India has transition period of 10 years from January 1, 1995 to apply the provisions of the agreement.

The Indian Patent Act of 1970 offers Patent to processes by which new medicines are produced rather than to the drugs themselves, India has agreed to bring the products as well under patent cover. In addition to this, while the duration of drug patents was earlier 10 years, the WTO agreement calls for a 20 year protection. But changes in two areas had to be made in January 1995 itself. Firstly, applications for product patents were to be made immediately and secondly, exclusively marketing rights had to be given to holders of product patents.

Changes in the old provisions over patent protection aroused opposition and criticism in the developing countries especially India. It was felt that it will raise the prices of medicines sharply in developing countries where the poor people will find it difficult to afford. But there is some truth in it. Of course, the prices of drugs under patent protection will rise but the reality is that less than 10 percent of medicines in market are covered by patent and few drugs have that protection. So there will not be all round rise in the drug prices.

Several measures have been taken to streamline and strengthen the administrative system to implement Intellectual Property Rights. To an existing stock of about 30 million patent documents published so far about a million-covering approximately 400,000 inventions is added every year. It is estimated that about 80 per cent of the world’s knowledge of viable and adequate technologies is contained in patent documents. In India, CSIR has done computerized data base on Indian patents. Also few NGOs along with SCIR have done pioneer work in documenting indigenous knowledge. The former Prime Minister Mr. I.K. Gujral had given green signal for a proposal to totally revamp the patenting system in the country. Its main aim is to remove the various deficiencies which were resulting in delays and secondly restricting will taken place addressing obsolete infrastructure, laws of scientific and administrative staff.

After signing the WTO agreement India has no option but to follow it. But still perceptions on patents differ. Earlier the patent issue over Neem was lost by India. But recently the decision has been in favour of India in turmeric patent case. CSIR argues well against the US patent on turmeric poweder. The US patent had been granted to University of Mississippi for the use of turmeric powder as wound-healing agent. It was argued by CSIR that Indians had been using turmeric powder as a wound-healing agent for centuries and so there was nothing new. They showed from various documents and old Vedic scriptures also. One positive fallout of this judgment will be that we can expect fairness on the patents issue and exploitation of our traditional knowledge base can be stopped, even if product patents are allowed. United States is going for patenting even life form. This will go against developing countries especially India because India’s plant resources are a potential laboratory for hundreds of novel inventions.

India has to amend its 1970 Patent Act to comply with the provisions of WTO agreement. National consensus should emerge and legislation should be enacted for application of patents and grant of exclusive marketing rights. Failure to do so can affect Indian exports and also compensation to the affected countries. Also a comprehensive data network is needed in order to protect our traditional knowledge base. Moreover, with proper database we are able to argue and fight well over patents issue and also piracy can be checked. Also fears of bio-piracy of India’s rich plant and micro-organism diversity has to be addressed properly by our government and NGOS.