Statement by India at the 48th series of Assemblies of the Member states of WIPO delivered by Shri R. P Singh, Secretary (DIPP) on 20 September 2010 Statement by India at the 48th series of Assemblies of the Member states of WIPO delivered by Shri R..
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Statement by India at the 48th series of Assemblies of the Member states of WIPO delivered by Shri R. P Singh,  Secretary (DIPP)
on 20 September 2010

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 Mr Chairman,

 

 1.       Allow me to congratulate you on your outstanding stewardship of the WIPO assembly. Let me also convey felicitations to Dr Francis Gurry and his team for the excellent work they have done over the past years.

 

2.       We recognise the importance of IPR for the development of the economy and are committed to ensure due protection and encouragement to intellectual property. It is in keeping with this pledge that we have declared the period 2011-2020 as the decade of innovation. The President of India in February this year underlined the government’s commitment “to create an innovation strategy for government, industry, entrepreneurs, technologists and academicians with a focus on inclusive growth and an appropriate eco-system necessary to bring about generational change in our approach to development”. To further this objective, the Government has set up a National Innovation Council which will identify, formulate and implement appropriate policy interventions to stimulate innovation. To firmly embed such innovations in the economic environment, the Council will promote the setting up of sector specific Innovation Councils and State Innovation Councils who will specially focus on small and medium enterprises.

 

3.       A number of other initiatives have also been taken. A  Global Innovation and Technology Alliance (GITA) has been established for encouraging and promoting industrial R & D through international cooperation. This will provide a framework to promote collaboration amongst all stakeholders.  The National Innovation Foundation has been set up to help India become an innovative and creative society and a global leader in sustainable technologies by scouting, spawning and sustaining grassroots   innovations. Greater linkages and  cooperation between industry and R&D institutes are being  fostered.  R&D is being encouraged through the tax regime. We are encouraging the private sector to broaden  their focus on R&D.   

 

4.       We have also embarked on enhancing the operational efficiency of our Intellectual Property Office with the view to bring about more transparency and quicker service. These include steps like improved and free search facilities for the public, transparency in the decision making process as well as optimum  deployment of  resources.

 

5.       I would like to inform you that parliamentary approval for amendments to the Indian Trademarks Act for bringing it in conformity with Madrid Protocol has been accorded. We are now in the process of preparing a road map for reaching the standards in  the protocol , based upon which we can calibrate the steps needed to move forward. 

 

Mr Chairman

 

6.       This has been an important year for WIPO and for its Member States. In the area of norm setting, we are happy to see that negotiations on developing an international instrument for effective protection of Traditional Knowledge, Traditional Cultural Expressions and Genetic Resources have been initiated. We look forward to productive engagements on this issue as well as in the Standing Committee on Copyrights and Related Rights during the year ahead.

 

7.       WIPO needs to reinvent itself to give a message to the developing nations that their development goals will be duly addressed and IPR will not be used as an end in itself. WIPO should also support the patent pool idea and earmark sufficient resources for this.

 

 

8.       A key factor in making the Organization more effective is the presence of a well functioning, Member State driven oversight and evaluation mechanism. In this context, we wish to express our appreciation for the good work done by the outgoing WIPO Audit Committee and welcome the turnover mechanism for appointing a new Audit Committee, agreed to by Member States. We also look forward to  the recommendations of the Audit Committee  being deliberated and debated upon by Member States.

 

9.       We   are a member of the Development Agenda Group and we share its common vision  of effective mainstreaming of the Development Agenda across all areas of WIPO’s work. We welcome the mechanism agreed to in the CDIP for monitoring and oversight of Development Agenda implementation as also the mainstreaming the Development Agenda project funding into the regular budgetary processes of WIPO. The agreed changes in the proposed WIPO’s reserves policy that places Development Agenda implementation at par with other strategic goals vis-à-vis utilisation of WIPO’s reserve funds is also appreciated.

 

10.     We commend the initiative taken by the DG in presenting a Medium Term Strategic Plan for WIPO to guide its work in the next five years. We are confident that our concerns reflected in the comments of the Development Agenda Group will be adequately addressed.  In particular, we believe that WIPO’s role and engagement in on-going negotiations in other forums on global challenges such as climate change, health, food security etc. should be guided by the inter-governmental mandate provided by Member States.  We hope that the scheduled mid-term review of MTSP will provide an opportunity for Member States to arrive at an agreed, consensus document that can effectively guide WIPO’s future work.

 

11.     Mr Chairman, allow me to raise some issues, which are of global concern.  The first is the issue of transfer of technology to the developing countries. Technology transfer provides a mechanism by way of which technological innovations can be shared while protecting the interests of the innovator. While some member states are advocating suo moto action by public authorities on protection of private rights, they are not as enthusiastic on  the issue of transfer of technology. The issue of technology transfer needs to be addressed adequately by Member States and policies that facilitate this transfer should be encouraged. While we recognise WIPOs efforts in this direction, more needs to be done.

 

12.     We are  deeply concerned with  recent international  initiatives for expanding the  existing  IP  framework   and creating new  norms  through  structures like ACTA,  MEDICRIME, IMPACT and  SECURE which operate outside the existing international  regime.  The non transparent nature of their functioning only adds to these concerns. We are also disturbed   about the   manner in which IPR negotiations are being brought into the bilateral and regional trading agreements and other plurilateral processes. With the stated objective of seeking protection and enforcement of IP rights beyond the provision of TRIPS, an attempt is being made to inexorably enhance IP related   norms. Such activism beyond current international legal obligations,   significantly undermines the  multilateral process as well as its institutions. In this connection, we welcome WIPO’s initiative to publish a document on flexibilities in the current IP regime.

 

13.     Another issue I would like to talk about is India’s Traditional Knowledge Digital Library.  We pioneered the TKDL which has overcome language and format barriers to enable patent examiners across the world to search for prior art relating to Indian systems of medicine. This has been done with the help of information technology and a unique classification called the Traditional Knowledge Resource Classification.  At present TKDL contains 34 million pages in a patent application format in five international languages. India has successfully concluded TKDL Access Agreements with a number of patent offices.  Through TKDL India has succeeded in cancellation /withdrawal/ modification of claims in  a number of  patent cases. India stands ready to share its experience with other developing countries who are concerned about misappropriation of their traditional knowledge.  In the long run, it is important that patent offices search the resource for prior art on their own. Ideally, we would like to include the TKDL data base in the Minimum PCT documentation requirement.

 

14.     I am confident that the present session will enable intensive deliberations and play a positive role in guiding WIPO’s work. The Indian delegation looks forward to participating and contributing to this important meeting.

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