The Centre has proposed to establish a national institute of intellectual property management to address the issues of training, research and policy formulation to facilitate a fair, equitable and world-class system of patenting in India which would be helpful for the life science, biotechnology and pharmaceutical sector in a large way.

This was disclosed by Dr. Ajay Dua, secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), while inaugurating the two-day national seminar on enhancing global competitiveness of Indian life sciences industry through the strategic use of the patent system, organised by World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), and Federation on Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

“We are in discussion with WIPO to create an IP management institute that imparts the requisite skills to IP managers for the corporate sector, attorneys and lawyers, addresses sponsored research work in the IP field and builds up a policy think tank for handling IP issues,” Dr. Dua said.

He also added that such an institute, combining all the three aspects in IP management, would be the first of its kind in the world.

Dr. Dua said that the scope and management of IP would need to evolve along with the research and patenting requirements of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and drugs, even as it has become imperative to bring our traditional knowledge in the public domain so that due credit is accorded to the communities and people who have contributed to creating a body of scientific knowledge.

Jay Erstling, director, Office of the Patenting Cooperation Treaty (PTC), WIPO said, “The PCT, of which India is a signatory and a valuable partner, provides simple, cost-effective and time-saving solutions based on best practices to member-countries as inventions get commercialised and disputes in IP arise.”

In this context, Erstling emphasied the need for settling commercial disputes amicably through the alternative dispute management system developed by WIPO.