Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)
- GS 2 Governance
Currently in the news
- DRDO Auditorium in New Delhi hosted a ‘National Seminar on Adjudication of Intellectual Property Rights Disputes in India’ in which the Chief Justice of India delivered the keynote presentation.
About
- Intellectual property rights are the ownership rights granted to individuals over the works of their imagination.
- It is common for them to provide the author an exclusive right over the use of his or her invention for a specific amount of time.
- Patents, copyright, and trademarks are examples of intellectual property that is legally protected and that allow people to profit financially or get notoriety from what they invent or produce.
Intellectual Property Rights are classified into the following categories: (IPR)
Copyright:
- It is a legal word that refers to the ownership rights that authors and artists have over their literary and creative creations.
- Books, music, art, sculpture, and films are just a few of the types of works protected by copyright, which also includes computer programmes, databases, ads, maps, and technical drawings.
Patent:
- It is an exclusive privilege granted for the purpose of inventing something.
- A patent grants the patent holder the authority to determine how – or not – the innovation can be utilised by others in accordance with the patent.
- In return for this privilege, the patent holder makes technical information about the invention publicly available in the patent document.
Trademark:
- It is a distinguishing mark that may be used to differentiate the goods or services of one firm from those of other businesses.
- It may be traced back to ancient times when craftspeople used to sign or “mark” their wares with their signature or “mark.”
- Industrial Design (ID) is a term that refers to the design of products and processes in the manufacturing industry.
- It is the feature of an object that is decorative or aesthetically pleasing.
- Depending on the design, it may include three-dimensional elements such as the form or surface of a product, or it may include two-dimensional elements such as patterns, lines, or colour.
Geographical Indications (GI)
- Signs of origin such as geographical indications (GIs) and appellations of origin (AoIs) are used on commodities that have a specific geographical origin and that have attributes, a reputation, or features that are primarily due to that location of origin.
- A geographical indicator is most often comprised of the name of the country or region where the products were produced.
Secrets of the Trade:
- In this case, the intellectual property rights to private information are being sold or licenced.
- A violation of trade secret protection is considered to be the unlawful acquisition, use, or disclosure of such secret information by others in a way that is inconsistent with fair and honest commercial practises.
Significance
- The existing intellectual property rights framework in India has played a significant role in the country’s current status as a global pharmaceutical powerhouse.
- Several pharmaceutical multinational corporations have outsourced research and development (R&D) to national facilities in India, according to the Indian government.
- The Supreme Court’s historic 2013 decision (Novartis vs. Union of India) is significant because it put an end to the practise of the pharmaceutical industry of extending the patent period by just changing some component ingredients of a drug’s formulation.
- This benefited the general public by ensuring that life-saving pharmaceuticals are available at a reasonable price for the general public.
- The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act of 2001 is a piece of legislation that protects plant varieties and farmers’ rights.
- In recent years, commercial firms have joined the field of breeding new types and high-yielding plants, bringing new technologies to the table.
- These corporations anticipate a certain amount of protection for the plant variations that they create in the future.
- Intellectual Property Rights convert directly into India’s growth in real time, and Intellectual Property Rights are extended to India’s Prosperity Right as a result of this translation.
- Innovation Powerhouse: Just as geographical limits protect our country’s interests, intellectual property protects our country’s potential. Intellectual property is the custodian of our country’s prospects. India has the potential to become the world’s “Innovation Powerhouse” if it is supported by intellectual property.
- Intellectual property is the foundation of a nation’s growth and serves to demonstrate the brilliance of our young. It helps to create livelihoods. The intellectual property (IP) has the ability and capacity to improve lives and provide livelihoods for billions of people.
- Help in Progress: More effective intellectual property rules contribute to India’s development as an innovation powerhouse. It is critical to the success of Start-up India, Make in India, and Design in India initiatives.
- Compete on a global scale: A strong intellectual property policy will facilitate the development of the sector and re-energize it during difficult times. It is one of the most precious assets in India’s capacity to compete in the global economy, making it one of the most valuable assets in the world.
- Transparency: These initiatives are offering transparency and simplicity of access to those seeking intellectual property rights.
Suggestions/Action Plan for the Future
- It is necessary to strengthen the High Courts in order for them to deal with IPR disputes.
- Not only do we need to fill the current vacancies as soon as possible, but we also need to expand the number of judges on the bench.
- In addition, there is a pressing need to upgrade the judicial infrastructure.
- Geographical Indications are important, and the government has to do more in this area, according to experts.
- In India, there are roughly 400 geographical indicators that have been recorded.
- Certain states, on the other hand, are performing well, while others are still catching up.
- It is imperative that remedial measures be taken immediately in order to realise the full potential of geographical indicators.
- It is necessary to operate in a mission mode in order to reach the lofty goal of being ranked among the top 25 nations on the Global Innovation Index by 2015.
- Intellectual property rights must ensure that whomever invents in India is not only protected, but also has a reasonable chance of success.
- In all fields, from automobiles to computers and from sewing machines to spaceships, India must inspire everyone to envision a brighter future for all of mankind.
- The design sector, as well as other stakeholders, must strive to establish India as the “Design centre of the World.”
