Visit of Hon’bleMinister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles H.E. Mr. Anand Sharma to Geneva (April 8, 2013)

High Level Policy Dialogue at WIPO and Handing over the Instrument of Accession to the Madrid Protocol

Hon’ble Minister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles Shri Anand Sharma delivered a keynote address titled, “Innovation and Development:  the Indian Experience’ at the High-Level Policy Dialogue organized by WIPO on April 8, 2013.  Prior to the keynote address, Hon’bleMinister handed over India’s Instrument of Accession to the Protocol relating to Madrid Agreement concerning the International Registration of Marks to the Director General WIPO Mr. Francis Gurry.

In his address, Minister Sharma highlighted the importance of innovation and intellectual property as critical assets for a country’s socio-economic development. He elaborated on consistent efforts made by Indian leaders since India’s independence on according a place of prime importance to innovation at various levels –through academic institutions, specialized institutions of research and development. He maintained that the legislative regime in India which circumscribes the IP rights is a robust one, and strikes a balance between the rights of the IP creators and the larger interests of the IP users.

Hon’ble Minister also expressed the confidence that India’s accession to Madrid Protocol would be beneficial for the economic development of India as well as to the brand owners around the world by extending their protection in the Indian market. India, thus, became the 90th member of the Madrid Protocol.

Minister presented to the Director General, WIPOa Madhubani painting, which has been accorded the Geographical Indication (GI) status in India. The High Level Dialogue was well attended by representatives from Permanent Missions and various United Nations and Inter-governmental organizations based in Geneva. Following the Keynote address, Commerce, Industry and Textile Minister held a Press Conference, which was attended by over 30 media persons.

Earlier in the day, the Minister, accompanied by the Permanent Representatives of India to the United Nationsas well as to the WTO, also held a meeting with DG, WIPO to discuss thebilateral cooperation agenda between India and WIPO. He exchangedviews on issuessuch as technical cooperation, assistance for operationalization of India’s International Search Authority/International Preliminary Examining Authority (ISA/IPEA), and training in the area of design law. Minister Sharma emphasized the need for early finalization and adoption of a legally binding instrument for effective protection of the Genetic Resources (GR), Traditional Knowledge (TK) and Traditional Cultural Expressions (TCE), currently being discussed at the WIPO Inter Governmental Committee (IGC) on GRs, TK and TCEs.

Minister of Commerce, Industry & TextilesShri. Anand Sharma was visiting Geneva at the invitation of the WIPO Director General. He was accompanied by four member senior official delegation from the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry.