PUNERI PAGADI REWARDED FOR G.I. CERTIFICATION

The famous headgear ‘Puneri Pagadi’, which is known as the symbol of pride and honor in the Pune region has rewarded for intellectual property rights (IPR) as Geographical Indication, with the result of that it has received geographical exclusivity.

Who has filed: Pune-based Great Mission Group Consultancy’s (GMGC’s) has filed the application on behalf of Shree Puneri Pagadi Sangh before the Geographical Indication registry, Chennai. GMGC’S is a registered firm that aims to promote intellectual property rights. Geographical Indication (GI) status has been made possible only due to the untiring research and efforts of some Pune-based law students

Which class: GI status for Puneri Pagadi has been filed in under “Class 25″, which deals with clothing, footwear and headgear products belong to handicraft good. The application for GI tag has been filed on 10 June, 2008.and it received application number 128.

History: The application claims that Mahadev Govind Ranade introduced the prevalent “Puneri Pagadi” for the first time in the 19th century. Since then, it has been worn by great leaders and personalities like Lokmanya Tilak, J S Karandikar, Dr D D Sathye, Tatyasaheb Kelkar and Dato Waman Pottdar. “Puneri Pagadi” has now become a matter of heritage.

This GI tag will legally prohibit the sell of tuban which are made in outside the Pune region and sold as the name of Puneri turban. This protection will bring economic prosperity of the producer of the good.

INDIA AND UNITED STATES SIGNED TKDL ACCESS AGREEMENT

On 22 Nov, 2009 India and United States has signed two inter-governmental agreements on Intellectual Property Rights. According to this agreement CSIR would provide training to the USPTO examiners and staff to help them use TKDL tools for search and examination. This would help prevent misappropriation of traditional knowledge through mistaken issuance of patents For instance, this has happened in the case of Turmeric, Neem, Basmati etc.( turmeric and basmati patent granted by (USPTO) and Neem patent granted by European Patent Office (EPO).

Another Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, Department of Industrial Policy and India's Commerce Ministry. The MoU between patent offices of the two countries would facilitate comprehensive bilateral cooperation on a range of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) issues focusing on capacity building, human resource development and raising public awareness of the importance of IPR

A Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL ) Access Agreement signed between the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) and US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The agreement will enable the USPTO to search the extensive database of India's traditional knowledge compiled under TKDL. This agreement will help the patent examiner to make a prior art search to check the patentability criteria of the filed invention.

Silk City of India Seeking for GI Tag

Bhagdattpuram (now Bhagalpur) was one of the most influential towns in "Aryavarta" popularly known as "ANGA PREDESH" or "ANGADESH". The word “Bhagdattpuram” literally means "City of Good Luck." Bhagalpur is a city in the Bihar state of India which is situated in the plane of the Ganges basin. Bhagalpur is acclaimed the world over for its silk products and it is known in India as the "Silk City" Famous for its Tussar Silk & Tussar Saree . The city is famous worldwide for its silk and mango

The application for a GI tag for ‘Bhagalpur Silk Fabrics and Saree’s has been filed on 15^th July 2009 by The Bhagalpur Regional Handloom Weavers Cooperative Union and six other organizations before the Chennai-based Geographical Indication Registry, the competent authority under Government of India. The handicraft good with “application number 180” comes under class 24 and 25 of the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. Class 24 of the Act deals with textiles and textile goods, bed and table covers while, Class 25 is for clothing, footwear and headgear. The application is now in pre - examination stage.

In Bhagalpur, there are about 30,000 handloom weavers out of which 95 % are jobseekers with 25000 handloom, the total value of the trade from Bhagalpur cluster is around Rs. 100 Crores (One billion) annually and 50 % of the turnover is from domestic market and the balance 50% is from export market . The export of Rs. 50 Crores (500 Millions) annual turnover is controlled by the exporter located in Bhagalpur Kolkata, Mumbai, and New Delhi and the remaining Rs. 50 Crores (500 Millions) domestic turnover is controlled by the trader.

The Bhagalpur cluster possesses the second position in silk fabric production and export after the Karnataka state. The weaver service centre was established by GOI in Bhagalpur during the year 1974 for development of silk industry in Bihar. The saree’s produced in Bhagalpur are not only popular in the domestic market but also has recognition and demand in overseas market.

Once the GI tag is granted then this will legally prohibit others to sell saree’s and fabrics’ made at place other than Bhagalpur under the same brand. So, GI will be effective tool for economic empowerment of the weaver community of Bhagalpur.

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_bihar-handloom-weavers-seek-geographical-indication-gi-tag_1303262

http://newsonwire.blogspot.com/2009/11/gi-status-sought-for-bhagalpur-silk.html

http://jaibihar.com/gi-tag-sought-for-bhagalpur-silk-fabrics/13523/

http://www.aseedinternational.com/silk.htm

http://www.bihartimes.com/Newsbihar/2009/Oct/Newsbihar22Oct1.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhagalpur

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/gi-status-sought-for-bhagalpur-silk-fabricssarees/76341/on

South Africa also joins the race of protecting traditional knowledge while India takes a step ahead

After India, China, Brazil etc now it is South Africa (SA) which is joining the race of commercializing Intellectual assets. Science and technology minister of SA, Naledi Pandor is of the opinion that intellectual property protection drives innovation and also that not enough has been done to address intellectual property (IP) rights. She says piracy has had a negative effect on SA, costing the country R540 million in 2006.
The Intellectual Property Rights Act, from the Publicly Funded Research and Development Bill, was signed earlier this year to increase innovation in the public sphere. However, Pandor said more still needs to be done.
During an intellectual property rights conference, last Friday, Pandor addressed government officials, academics and business leaders. She said one of the department's priorities is to protect indigenous knowledge in order to drive innovation among local communities.

Here one should note that intellectual property does not only mean protecting new inventions but also to protect that treasure of knowledge which has been there with certain communities and has flowed in time. These communities have protected this knowledge in their own crude way but now entire globe is becoming one global village and in absence of a formal international system it would not be possible to protect that knowledge for long. This is especially a threat in this biotechnology driven era where every possible avenue of bioprospecting is being explored by advanced countries.

It is for this reason that India has also signed an agreement with US and has given them access to TKDL so that they can search the same before granting any patent. This would help prevent misappropriation of traditional knowledge through mistaken issuance of patents.

South Africa has also put forward a mechanism to protect communities. They have organized a department to incorporate the institutional mechanism; the intellectual property management offices, which will be available through the country; as well as working with communities to ensure there is the infrastructure available to them to create economic opportunity.

In spite of all the efforts there is a long way we need to go before we are in a position to boast about protection of traditional knowledge but these foundation steps are nevertheless encouraging

GOA FENI REWARDED OF G.I. CERTIFICATION

Some countries which are the member of WTO have G I for liquor as in Europe - Tequila (spirits), Jaffa (oranges) and Bordeaux (wines).Such as Tequila and Mezcal from Mexico, Scotch whiskey from the UK and Champagne from France, now in India also a liquor” GOA FENI “ registered as gi . India is a member of WTO's rules on intellectual property (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property, or TRIPS) and as of its obligations; the country has passed its own act. the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration And Protection) Act, 1999 provides for the registration and better protection of geographical indications.

Fenny is an Indian liquor made from either coconut or the juice of the cashew apple. Fenny (also FENI ) originated in GOA. The popular brands of fenny are 1 .Cashyo 2. Reals (pronounced as Reaals), 3.Big Boss’. Fenny is often used in cocktails. Three common mixers are Coca-Cola, tonic water and lemonade . The word fen meaning froth which is form during shaking or pouring liquer in bottle, froth is called FEN in local kokan language . Sattari sub-district of GOA is known as 'Fenny capital' of the region, Because of highest number of cashew stills presence in this area. (According to the Baseline Survey of the FENI Industry by Pranab Mukhopadhyay, Santosh Maurya and Suryabhan Mourya, GOA, April 2008)

History: zulejos (Portuguese ceramic tile work) inside Panjim's 175-year-old Central Library, librarian Maria de Lourdes Brava da Costa Rodrigues talks animatedly about GOA's signature drink, kaju (cashew) FENI. “The FENI story begins here with the Portuguese reaching India," she says, pointing to one of the zulejos that shows Vasco da Gama at King Zamorin's court in 1498. "The Portuguese brought cashew apple from Brazil to India in the late 16th century. FENI gained popularity in the 1970s,

Generally there are two types of FENI 1. Coconut fenny – this is made from the sap of the coconut palm 2.Cashew fenny - this is made from the fermented juice of cashew fruit is also called Kaju fenny. The liquor produced from cashew is categorized in three grades: 1.URRAC 2. CAZULAO 3. FENI.

Urrac (Arrack): first distillation product which consume neat. Its strength ranges between 14 and 16 GARO. It is often consumed with lemon or orange soda. Cazulo: second distillation product. It is moderately strong. The Cazulo can be consumed either neat or in a diluted form depending upon the constitution of the drinker. It is no longer available in market today. Fenny: third distillation product. Its strength ranges between 20 and 24 GARO . It has a long shelf life. High-grade fenny is 42% alcohol by volume.

The GOA Cashew FENI Distillers and Bottlers Association (TGCFDBA) and The Department of Science, Technology & Environment of the GOA government had jointly effort provide GI tag for FENI, which is registered under class 33, which deals with alcoholic beverages (except beers) application number 120 as date of 19 December , 2007 .under the name "FENI" which is a colorless clear liquid when matured in wooden barrels getting golden brown tint . This GI registration will protect the rights of farmers and local producers, bottler (population is estimated around 40,000) of this unique product. There are an estimated 4,000 traditional mini-distilleries or stills in GOA that make cashew FENI and about 2,200 making coconut FENI . It is also expected that GI registration will enhance its market potential .GOA produces eight lakh liters of cashew FENI annually and it is exported to US, Australia and the Middle East. The price of FENI varies from 60 to 800 rupees. The production of the cottage industry in GOA begins when the cashew fruit is harvested in February or March and the process of making FENI is complete by end of May.

The traditional method of distilling cashew fenny

1. The cashew juice is put in a big pot (called a Bhann.) Which is connected to a smaller pot (called Launni) by means of a conduit? The Launni serves as a receiver or collector

2. Juice in big pot is boiled with the help of firewood and process of vaporisation and distillation take place result in the concentrated liquid which collects in the smaller pot, the pressure in the receiver is kept in check by pouring cold water on it, typically with a wooden ladle.

3. The first stage of processing (vaporisation) is done on big fire but the later stage of distillation has to be done on slow fire to keep the pressure and heat under control.

4. The process of distilling fenny with such apparatus takes about 8 hours and is locally called Bhatti.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fenny

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc /law/staff/academic/rangnekar/pg1/

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/FENI-makershigh-as-spirit-gets-gi-tag/64725/on

http://www.typosemestr.cz/GOA’s-FENI-may-get-geographical-indication-status

See the status of Application: https://www.ipindiaonline.gov.in/gi/(S(ka0wgv45owx1cjv544wa4uz4))/gisearch.aspx

Link for the Act : http://ipindia.nic.in/girindia/GI_Act.pdf

GARO: The traditional GARO used to measure the strength of CAJU FENI. Keep in mind also that GARO measures strength and not purity or quality

Cavtec- Contribution of Information Technology to IP Valuation

Today, IT and information systems are everywhere and are definitely here to stay. After contributing to almost every possible application which humans ever thought of ranging from construction to research; from accounts to rocket science; from management to organization, now IT and database systems are diverting their attention to patents, technology transfer and the like. Intellectual property is a new field and its full potential is yet to be unleashed but as of now the greatest enigma faced by IP professionals is the issue of Technology valuation, this refers not only to the value one associates with a technology but also to the fact that how much should one expect from a technology or from a patent. This is very important when one needs to make informed decisions in business about where to invest, why to invest and how to invest, especially in research. It is for this purpose that financial professionals are hired by big companies especially for patent valuation. In past few years there has been a tremendous increase in the percentage of revenues generated by intangible assets of any given organization. But the methods which are presently used for IP valuation are both coarse and are out of reach for people who have no financial background. Therefore there is a need for a platform which can be used for determining IP value with a good amount of precision and reliability. Cavtec has come up with one such platform called CAV. This is a software that has been field tested on over 100 projects since 1997 and has helped universities, businesses, and entrepreneurs develop effective IP strategies and negotiate successful agreements. It was formally launched this November; CAV was also recently showcased in LES annual meeting.
CAV is a repeatable, comprehensive approach to IP valuation. It features a step-by-step method for quantifying factors that determine a technology's competitive advantage in a given market. This is a PC based approach and its key applications include valuing early- stage technologies, negotiating patent licensing, determining venture investments, predicting IP success in marketplace, performing due diligence, calculating infringement damages etc.
CAV, patented by CAVTEC founder Ted Hagelin, is based on his extensive expertise. Hagelin is nationally recognized for IP valuation through his work as the Director of Syracuse University's Technology Commercialization Research Center and his research on intellectual property strategy and patent valuation. He teaches intellectual property and technology commercialization law at Syracuse University College of Law.
In my opinion there is lot of scope in this arena of software development for IP analytics and valuation as this not only makes life of a patent professional easier but also increases efficacy and productivity both qualitatively and quantitatively of any IP department. It is also possible to develop in house products to serve such purposes. But, at present what is most important is the fact that industry should recognize this as a vital need for IP departments and should work towards resource allocation on such projects.
Source: Reuters

Glivec Case- Are the implications deeper then what we anticipate?

Today, every individual having an average awareness is talking about the famous Glivec case. This case is regarding a patent for an anticancer drug called Glivec developed by swiss- pharma gaint Novartis. Glivec has been denied a patent by Mumbai and Chennai High courts and now the case is appealed in Supreme Court and is awaiting a Judgment. So much is the basic understanding about this case of common man. But now the question is that when Glivec will finally be denied a patent, what will be the implications? Will it impact our economy and FDI?
Daniel Vasella who is CEO of Novartis was recently in Mumbai has declared that Novartis would now be investing $1billion in China instead of India because they feel that IP protection in India is not up to the standards. He also said that “There is a significant difference between India and China - in the political system, in the decision making processes, in the complexities of the processes and in the continuity. I think India has potential but things take longer to get done. It may come as a surprise but China has made tremendous progress in IP and is enforcing IP in pharmaceuticals.” According to Mr. Vasella IP protection is the crux of pharmaceutical investments and is fundamental to pharmaceutical business.
At this point one may argue that statistics has shown that patent filings in India are increasing every year. But when we go deep into the matter we find that majority of the patent filings are done by companies who have a business base in India but are essentially supported by foreign investment, for example Monsanto, Millipore in biotechnology sector, Sony Erricson in Electronics and so on.
Business outsourcing has been one of the important revenue and employment generators for quite some time now and I dare say that this is a good option for our country as we have ample human resources and other advantages. Apart from that CRO’s are emerging in India in a big way. So, we are definitely not in a position to lose this market.
All this makes me think that these statements made by the CEO of a pharma gaint may have far reaching consequences for our country. It may be possible that nothing comes out of it but there is also another possibility where other corporate giants may also think in the same way and bend towards China rather then India. We cannot neglect the fact that it is also emerging as a big market for outsourcing research & development activities.
As of now we can only wait for Supreme Court verdict on the case which seems to have more at stake then just a patent for an anticancer drug.

MOU between DIPP and WIPO

This news item appeared on Indialawnews.com. it runs as follows:

Shri Ajay Shankar, Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion and Dr. Francis Gurry, Director General of World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for cooperation.

The objective of this MOU is to strengthen cooperation between the Government of India and the WIPO through a more active, systematic organization and conduct of joint activities with a view to promote the goal of using Intellectual Property (IP) for economic, social, cultural and technological development in India. The areas of cooperation envisaged include, assisting India in implementing its national IP and innovation strategy; empowering knowledge creators in the use of IP; building awareness on IP as a critical tool for promoting innovation and creativity through public outreach activities. The MOU also provides for cooperation between the WIPO Worldwide Academy (WMA) and the National Institute for Intellectual Property Management, Nagpur.

An IP Development Action Plan has been drawn up for 2010-2011 representing the activities identified as priority area for cooperation during the same period. The MOU will be reviewed and evaluated every two years after its entry into force.

Bt Brinjal-Genetically speaking

Brinjal has never been such a debatable issue in country. Most of us probably push it away during dinner at home, but this brinjal is on a verge of creating history by becoming countries first transgenic food crop. This transgenic food crop, Bt brinjal had crossed the regulatory hurdle of Genetic Engineering Approval Committee(GEAC) which is mandatory approval agency for any genetically modified crop to commercialize in India under Ministry of Environment & Forest.

According to Financial Express, brinjal is a survival cash crop for more than 1.4 million small and marginal farmers and is grown in more than 5.5 lakh hectares in the country. Eggplant Fruit and Shoot Borer, EFSB (Leucinodes orbonalis)is the major pest which is responsible for 70% of the brinjal crop loss, and about two-third of the pesticide used for the crop is spend in controlling EFSB pest. Cry gene technology has made brinjal crop resistant from pest and reduced 70% of the pesticide employed for controlling EFSB pest.

Cry gene technology has become a key factor in achieving advances in agriculture. As we can see the result of Bt cotton which has changed the life of farmers growing cotton. The adoption of Bt cotton by farmers increased from 3.8 million in 2007 to 5 million in 2008 which is an adoption rate of about 82%. Brinjal issue is somewhat different as it will be used for human consumption. The studies done by GEAC did not show any risk and 105 page report which declares Bt brinjal as ‘safe’ for human consumption is available online for anyone to comment upon it till Dec 31.

Labelling of Bt brinjal is the next contentious issue that needs to be resolved. Currently In India, there is no labelling regime for genetically modified crops. There is no international agreement, standard, or guideline on GM food labeling. The Codex Alimentarius Commission has discussed this issue for over a decade without reaching consensus on a labeling guideline. India is soon going to come up with Act which is currently under scanner, it deals with the future standards for foods in India. It is known as “Food Safety and Standard Act 2006”. The act deals with genetically modified food but not with the labelling provisions. All the standards in the following act are science based and ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto provision. There needs to be mandatory labelling provision for the genetically modified food , but there are many questions that needs to be answered if labeling of GM foods becomes mandatory. Who is to be responsible for educating the public about GM food labels and how costly will that education be? Food labels must be designed to clearly convey accurate information about the product in simple language that everyone can understand. This may be the greatest challenge faced by a new food labeling policy: how to educate and inform the public without damaging the public trust and causing alarm or fear of GM food products. Will it result in consumer choice?, Would it be compatible with the country’s general economic goals and its international obligations? What will be the acceptable limits of GM contamination in non-GM products ? If the food production industry is required to label GM foods, factories will need to construct two separate processing streams and monitor the production lines accordingly. Farmers must be able to keep GM crops and non-GM crops from mixing during planting, harvesting and shipping. It is almost assured that industry will pass along these additional costs to consumers in the form of higher prices. Are consumers willing to absorb the cost of such an initiative? A response to each of these questions is necessary to ensure the introduction of a labeling policy serves a country’s economic and social goals.

Genetically-modified foods have the potential to solve food security problem by eroding world’s hunger and malnutrition problem, and to help protect and preserve the environment by increasing yield and reducing reliance upon chemical pesticides and herbicides. Yet there are many challenges ahead for governments, especially in the areas of safety testing, regulation, international policy and food labeling. Many people feel that genetic engineering is the inevitable wave of the future and that we cannot afford to ignore a technology that has such enormous potential benefits. However, we must proceed with caution to avoid causing unintended harm to human health and the environment as a result of our enthusiasm for this powerful technology.

Father of Grassroots Innovation - Prof. Anil K Gupta

Professor Anil Kumar Gupta is a senior faculty at Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad one of the best business schools in India. This is not his only identification; but his work shows he has multidimensional personality. He is the executive vice-chairman of NIF (National Innovation Foundation). He is the first person in India who initiated promotion of grass root innovators since 1989. Recently in an interview he speaks about cross-pollination work of grassroots innovations, ideas on globalization, technology commons and his experience with big industries as well as Government, which is published in The Wall Street Journal | India. By his persistent and dedicated work, now more than 120,000 grass root innovations and traditional knowledge practices are documented from all various fields such as agriculture, animal and human medicines, herbal drugs, mechanical devices, rural technologies from the informal and unorganized sector of rural and urban India.

NIF has been established under the Department of Science and technology, Government of India on 28^th February, 2000. The main aim is to provide scouting, documenting and scaling of sustainable innovations and helping innovators of the informal sector to get to market the products through incubation and business development. It helps in protecting Intellectual Property rights of Grass root innovators and documents various innovations and Traditional practices. It also helps in technology transfer of suitable technologies. 57 Technologies have been already licensed. Former President of India Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam has been a great supporter and guide to NIF since its inception. and highly appreciates Prof. A.K. Gupta’s efforts. It also holds rural innovation competition where best grass root innovations are awarded. Innovations and medicinal plant database in Multilanguage is maintained by NIF. Similarly, Honeybee network tries to connect whole India and also creates awareness about the importance of grassroots innovations in the development of the Nation. SRISTI and GIAN support NIF in all its activities.

India is really blessed having a son like Prof. Anil K. Gupta. He is a true role model to be followed by the youth of nation. His many ideologies such as respect to traditional practices as well as grass root innovations, belief in sustainable technologies etc match with that of the Father of Nation - Mahatma Gandhi. He works for India but his essence of work has spread globally.