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Patent and IPR body asks India to shore up legal sector

World Intellectual Property Organisation director general Kamil Idris said in New Delhi on Monday that India has made considerable progress on patent protection and intellectual property rights but should take more steps to spread education on these subjects and to build administrative and legal infrastructure.

Idris held discussions with Industry Minister Sikander Bakht and Human Resource Development Minister Murli Manohar Joshi on matters relating to teaching of intellectual property rights including industrial property and copyright.

Idris said India's copyright legislation was excellent but the period given should be modified.

Referring to the challenges India has to meet, Idris said the proposed Intellectual Property Institute should be a reality at the earliest. More colleges or schools should start courses in intellectual property rights and laws. India also should have more patent advisers and attorneys, he said.

WIPO would continue to give all assistance to modernisation of projects in India and in imparting training, he said. He was happy that India had been a member of most treaties of WIPO.

During his talks with Indian authorities, it was decided to hold annual meeting of policy makers for Asia-Pacific region here, he said.

Idris said he had also discussed issues relating to data base treaty and rights of broadcasting organisations. All legal issues were being discussed with member countries. Although no treaty has been finalised on the rights of the broadcasting organisations, the issue might be ready in the next two or three years for a diplomatic convention, he said.

He said the WIPO symposium held here last year on traditional medicines was a big success. However, it was not yet at a stage of setting up norms on intellectual property rights, he said.

The worldwide network set up by the WIPO would assist new users of industrial property, judiciary and police. It would also help development of enforcement agencies, he said.

UNI

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