Red tape is synonymous with the processes such as getting a patent or copyright registration. People have to endure a lot to get over the delayed processes to get their findings and creations as certified proprietary property.
The office of the Controller General of Patents, Trademarks and Designs in Mumbai was reviewed by the Union Minister for Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs and Textile, Piyush Goyal for its functioning and deliberated on ways in which it can be built to be a robust Intellectual Property Rights infrastructure that will catapult India as an innovation hub.
Goyal addressed Government’s commitment to reinforce the ecosystem of trademarks, patents, design, GI (Geographic Indication) systems; endorse innovation, research, and development in the country and bring the latest inventions and awareness from India’s Heritage systems to the global platform.
It has come as a mandate that pending applications should be completed within days and not months. Goyal said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had been closely monitoring developments in this field since 2014. It has to be borne in mind that pendency in the IPR department has drastically gone down which is a good sign.
He also mentioned the reduction in the fee that has been allowed by the department for supporting women start-ups and entrepreneurs. Fees for filing start-ups, MSMEs, Women Entrepreneurs have been reduced by 80%. Minister emphasized the use of digital means for processing every application is now available online start to finish, hearings can be conducted online even on phones, people don’t have to travel to the patent offices now.
He suggested making the whole process more friendly, by increasing awareness on GI tags and their significance, instituting scholarship to students studying Intellectual Property Law, and engaging faculties from known institutions for patent checks, on a part-time basis.
The IP process has been simplified and streamlined than ever before, and the whole process has been re-engineered for promoting the ease of filing and obtaining services. Now special care will be given to the ones who file applications for start-ups, Women entrepreneurship, etc.
All these developments have been reflected positively, improving the ranking of India in Global Innovation Index, Climbing 33 steps from the 81st position in 2016 to 48th in 2020.
Follow and connect with us on Facebook, LinkedIn & Twitter
