Intellectual Property Rights and Science Policy in India Notes

Intellectual property rights (IPR) are legal rights over the creations of the human mind: inventions, books, songs, designs, brand names and traditional knowledge. They reward the creator and encourage innovation, but they also affect public health, agriculture and access to knowledge. IPR is a regular topic of the UPSC: the Prelims asks about the types of IPR, the Indian laws, GI tags and the TRIPS agreement; the Mains asks about the balance between innovation and public interest, patent issues for medicines and the protection of traditional knowledge. This note explains IPR, the Indian framework and the science and technology policy in simple language, with tables and a Mains structure.

Types of Intellectual Property

Patents: What Can and Cannot Be Patented

An invention can be patented if it is new (novelty), involves an inventive step (not obvious to an expert) and is capable of industrial application. The Patents Act excludes some things: discoveries of natural substances, mathematical or business methods, computer programmes per se, methods of agriculture and treatment of humans or animals, traditional knowledge, and plants and animals. The patent office is headed by the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, with its head office in Mumbai.

Important Patent Issues in India

• Product patent for medicines: Under the Patents Act of 1970, only the process was patentable for food and medicines, which helped India's generic drug industry to grow. After joining the WTO, India amended the law (the main change in 2005) to give product patents.
• Section 3(d): A new form of a known substance is not patentable unless it shows a significant increase in efficacy. It is meant to stop "evergreening", where companies make small changes to extend their patent. In the Novartis v. Union of India case (2013), the Supreme Court used this provision to refuse a patent for the cancer drug Glivec.
• Compulsory licensing (Section 84): The government can allow another company to make a patented product if it is not available at a reasonable price or in sufficient quantity. In 2012, India issued the first compulsory licence for the cancer drug Nexavar to the Indian company Natco.
• Bolar provision: Allows the use of a patented drug for research and testing before the patent expires so that generic versions are ready soon after.

International Framework

• WIPO: The World Intellectual Property Organization, with its headquarters in Geneva, is a UN agency that administers the treaties on IPR and publishes the Global Innovation Index.
• Paris Convention (1883) and Berne Convention (1886): The early treaties on industrial property and on copyright.
• TRIPS Agreement (1995): The WTO agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, which sets the minimum standards of IPR protection for all members, including a patent term of 20 years.
• Doha Declaration (2001): Confirmed that TRIPS should not stop the countries from protecting public health, and allowed compulsory licensing in emergencies.
• UPOV: The convention on the protection of new plant varieties.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, India and South Africa proposed a temporary waiver of some TRIPS provisions for vaccines and medicines, and the discussion showed the tension between the protection of patents and global access to health.

Geographical Indications (GI)

A GI tag is given to a product whose quality or reputation is linked to its place of origin. India's GI law came into force in 2003, and Darjeeling Tea was the first product to get a GI tag in India. Other examples are Basmati rice, Kancheepuram silk, Banarasi sarees, Mysore silk, Alphonso mango, Tirupati laddu, Pochampally Ikat and Madhubani paintings. The GI helps farmers and artisans to get a better price, prevents imitation and promotes rural development and tourism. The GI Registry is at Chennai.

Traditional Knowledge and Biopiracy

Biopiracy means the unfair use of a country's biological resources or traditional knowledge, often through a patent, without permission or a share of the benefit. India faced cases such as the US patent on the wound-healing use of turmeric (granted in 1995 and cancelled in 1997 after a challenge by CSIR), the European patent related to the neem fungicide (revoked in 2005) and the patent claims on basmati rice by a US firm. To stop such claims, India made the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) in 2001, which records the ancient knowledge of Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha and Yoga in several languages in a form that the patent offices can search. The Biological Diversity Act, 2002 requires prior approval and benefit-sharing for the use of Indian biological resources.

Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights

The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001 gives rights to the breeders of new varieties and also protects the farmers: a farmer can save, use, sow, exchange and sell the farm-saved seeds (except the branded seed of a registered variety), and the farmers who conserve landraces get recognition and rewards. The Act is administered by the PPV and FR Authority. A well-known dispute was the case of a multinational company that filed a case over the farmers growing a potato variety in Gujarat, which brought the issue of farmers' rights to public attention.

National IPR Policy and Science Policy

The National IPR Policy (2016) has the slogan "Creative India; Innovative India". Its aims are IPR awareness, promotion of creation, a strong legal framework, administration and commercialisation. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is the nodal department, and the Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM) supports the work. India's science policies have developed in stages: the Scientific Policy Resolution of 1958, the Technology Policy Statement of 1983 and the Science, Technology and Innovation Policy of 2013. The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (set up by a law in 2023) aims to fund and coordinate research in universities and institutions, since India's spending on research and development is only around 0.7 per cent of the GDP, which is low in comparison to countries such as China, South Korea and Israel. The Atal Innovation Mission (2016) promotes innovation through the Atal Tinkering Labs and incubators.

Mains Angle: Balancing Innovation and Access

A strong IPR system rewards the creators, attracts investment and encourages research. But excessive protection can raise the price of medicines, restrict the farmers' access to seeds and limit the sharing of knowledge. India has tried to balance the two: it complies with TRIPS but uses safeguards such as Section 3(d), compulsory licensing and the Bolar provision to protect public health, and it stresses the protection of traditional knowledge and farmers' rights. India should keep these safeguards, resist "TRIPS-plus" demands in trade agreements, and at the same time strengthen the domestic innovation ecosystem and patent examination capacity.

How to Remember

Use the numbers: patent 20, copyright life plus 60, trademark 10 (renewable), design 10, GI 10 (renewable). Pair each law with its year: Patents 1970, Copyright 1957, Trade Marks 1999, GI 1999, Designs 2000, PPV and FR 2001. Add the three famous cases of biopiracy (turmeric, neem, basmati) in one line, and revise the safeguards used by India to protect public health.

Practice Questions

• Q1. What is the term of a patent in India? Answer: 20 years.
• Q2. Which was the first product to get a GI tag in India? Answer: Darjeeling Tea.
• Q3. What is the TKDL? Answer: A database of traditional Indian knowledge, made to prevent biopiracy.
• Q4. Which section of the Patents Act is used against evergreening? Answer: Section 3(d).

Read it with the notes on biotechnology and genetic engineering and the external sector and the WTO.

Quick Revision

• Patent 20 years; copyright life plus 60 years; trademark 10 years renewable; GI 10 years renewable.
• TRIPS (1995, WTO); Doha Declaration (2001); WIPO at Geneva.
• Section 3(d), compulsory licence (Natco, 2012), Novartis case (2013).
• TKDL (2001) fights biopiracy; PPV and FR Act (2001); National IPR Policy (2016).

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is intellectual property?

Intellectual property means the legal rights over creations of the mind such as inventions, works of art, designs and brand names.

What is the term of a patent in India?

A patent in India lasts for 20 years from the date of filing.

What does a copyright protect?

A copyright protects original literary, musical and artistic works, films and software, for the lifetime of the author plus 60 years in India.

What is the TRIPS agreement?

TRIPS is the WTO agreement of 1995 that sets the minimum standards of intellectual property protection for all members.

What is Section 3(d) of the Patents Act?

It stops the patenting of new forms of known substances unless there is a significant increase in efficacy, and it helps to prevent evergreening.

What is compulsory licensing?

It is the permission given by the government to another company to produce a patented product when it is not available at a reasonable price or in enough quantity.

What is a Geographical Indication?

A GI is a tag for products whose quality or reputation is linked to a place, such as Darjeeling tea.

Which was the first GI product in India?

Darjeeling Tea was the first product to get a GI tag in India.

What is biopiracy?

Biopiracy is the unfair use of biological resources or traditional knowledge of a country, often by patents, without permission or benefit-sharing.

What is the TKDL?

The Traditional Knowledge Digital Library is a database of Indian traditional medicine knowledge created to stop wrong patents.

What rights do farmers have under the PPV and FR Act?

Farmers can save, use, sow, exchange and sell farm-saved seed, except branded seed of a registered variety.

What is the National IPR Policy of 2016?

It is India's policy to promote IPR awareness, creation, legal protection and commercialisation, with the slogan Creative India; Innovative India.