DIPP constitutes think tank to draft IPR policy

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) has constituted a think tank to draft a National Intellectual Property Rights Policy and to advice the department of on IPR issues.

The IPR think tank, headed by Justice Prabha Sridevan, former chairperson of the Intellectual Property Apellate Board and former judge of the Madras High Court, has Pratibha Singh (advocate at Singh & Singh Associates), Punita Bhargava (advocate at Inventure IP), Dr Unnat Pandit (Cadila Pharmaceuticals Limited) and Rajeev Srinivasan (director of Asian School of Business, Thiruvananthapuram) as members.

Narendra K Sabarwal, retired DDG of World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) will be its member-convener.

The IPR Think Tank has been tasked with drafting a National Intellectual Property Rights Policy. It will identify areas in IPR where study needs to be conducted and furnish recommendations in this regard to the government.

It would provide the government with detailed views on the possible implications of demands placed by the negotiating partners while keeping it regularly informed about the developments taking place in IPR cases which would have an impact upon India's IPR policy.

The think tank will advise the government on the best practices to be followed in trademark offices, patent offices and other government offices dealing with IPR in order to create an efficient and transparent system of functioning in the concerned offices.

Besides, the think tank will prepare periodic reports on best practices followed in foreign countries, highlight anomalies in the present IPR legislations and advice the ministry on possible solutions as well as give suggestions on the steps that may be taken for improving infrastructure in IP offices and tribunals.

Further, it would examine the current issues raised by industry associations and those that may have appeared in media and to give suggestions to the ministry on such issues.