New IPR Initiatives India
Govt. of India is working to reduce the approval time of patent from the current 5-6 years to 15 months.
The proposed draft amendments 2015 will reduce the granting time, for instance Expeditious examination process available when the applicant or his assignee or prospective manufacturer (licensee) has already started manufacturing of the invention in India, or has undertaken that the manufacturing shall commence within two years from the grant of patent.
(Click here and see page 6, 24C Expedited Examination of application)
To speed up the examination process, the DIPP has initiated recruitment of 459 additional patent examiners (see notification and status here
According to the data, as on July 31, 2015, of the four patent offices, Delhi at 83,291 had the maximum number of pending applications followed by Chennai at 74,390, Kolkata at 40,558 and Mumbai at 28,100.
Apart from speeding the process of granting patents, in the wake of new IPR policy, the Government will be launching an awareness programme in 25 universities and institutes across 21 states, starting this Nov 24th 2015. National Research Development Corporation (NRDC), an Enterprise of the Department of Scientific & Industrial Research, Ministry of S&T in association with the office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (CGPDTM), under Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce & Industry will look at the awareness and capacity building workshops in 25 Universities /Institutions in 21 states, starting from November 24. (source: PTI)
