Even as hectic activities are going on between the Indian government and the European Commission (EC) to finalise and sign the India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in April this year, the NGOs working in the health sector have warned the government that the harsh IP provisions, that remain on the table for negotiations in the agreement, will jeopardize access to affordable generic medicines.

Urging the Indian government to reject European Union's (EU) demand to sign FTA before the April deadline, the NGOs, Delhi Network of Positive People (DNP+) and the international medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), said that even though certain provisions damaging to access to medicines have been removed from the proposed deal, the intellectual property (IP) enforcement and investment provisions are still seriously concerning.

The IP provisions could potentially block the export of generic medicines from India – a lifeline for millions of people across the developing world. By allowing medicines to be delayed, seized, detained and destroyed, enforcement provisions would open the door to abusive practices from multinational corporations. They could also draw in third parties, including suppliers of active pharmaceutical ingredients used to produce generic medicines and treatment providers like MSF, potentially embroiling them in court cases simply for buying or distributing generic medicines, they said.

The NGOs further warned the government that measures on investment could see the Indian government sued by multinational companies for billions of dollars in private arbitration panels if national laws, policies, court decisions or other actions are perceived to interfere with their investments – for example, if an Indian patent office rejects or overrides a patent on a medicine to increase access.

“India should not rashly sign this agreement before the parliament Standing Committee on Commerce has the opportunity to examine the impact of trade deals on access to medicines,” said Leena Menghaney, manager for MSF’s Access Campaign in India.

“The EU cannot claim it supports access to medicines and is concerned about the lives of patients in developing countries, and in the same breath be pushing harsh provisions around intellectual property enforcement on India,” said Loon Gangte of DNP+.

More than 300 representatives from DNP+, state level networks, civil society and MSF protested outside the EC India headquarters in Delhi on March 13, demanding the removal of harmful provisions in the FTA.