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G. Srinivasan

New Delhi , March 22

WITH the Left parties deciding to support the Government, the Patents (Amendment) Bill 2005 had a smooth passage in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

The Bill was approved through voice vote, after the principal Opposition, the National Democratic Alliance, staged a walk out when its demand for referring the Bill to a select committee was not accepted.

The amended Bill provides for product patent in drugs, agri products and embedded software while patentability of plants remains outside the purview of the proposed Act.

The Bill replaces the Presidential Ordinance promulgated on December 23 to fulfil India's obligation to the World Trade Organisation to put in place a product patent regime from January 1, 2005.

However, the Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Kamal Nath, moved 15 official amendments, mostly to accommodate the points raised by the Left parties. But two amendments sought by the Left parties were not pressed when the Minister assured them that the issue of the patentability of new chemical entities and micro-organisms would be referred to an expert committee and if any amendments were suggested to safeguard the interests of these products, they would be incorporated into the new legislation later.

Replying to a four-hour debate on the Bill, Mr Kamal Nath said apprehension about drug prices rising once the product patent regime was in force were unfounded as enough safeguards were built into the Act. Rebutting the charge that the Government had to follow the dictates of multinationals in complying with the changes to the Patent Act, the Minister asserted that the provisions of the Bill "were not multinational-driven but nationally driven."

He said that India had been engaged with the WTO ever since its inception in 1995 and the country's exports had shot up from $22 billion in 1993-94 to $75 billion today. Pharmaceutical exports alone, which were minimal then, were of the order of Rs 16,000 crore today.

He said in the changing dynamics of global trade, India could not renege on its international obligations. Moreover, the patent legislation was a tribute to Indian scientists as they were not merely lending their knowledge and intellect but also were able to create intellectual capital abroad and patent them successfully.

Given the expertise and knowledge of the domestic drug industry and scientists, "India could change the paradigm of research and development" by investing in technology and protecting the products through patent, he said. Mr Kamal Nath said the new law would also define what could be patented and patents would be granted only to new inventions and would not be extended to a new use of a known product. He said companies in India would be allowed to export patented medicines to countries facing public heath crises. The Minister said that India was one of the few countries where pre-grant and post-grant opposition to patents was provided for after the application of a patent within a stipulated time period.

Referring to the Opposition demand that the Bill be sent again to a Select Committee, he said this was not tenable because the amendments were in existence since September 2003 and what could not be resolved all this time could not be done now by seeking further extension.

Earlier, the Trinamool Congress leader, Ms Mamata Banerjee; the TDP leader, Mr Yerran Naidu; and the BJP member, Mr K. Swain, sought the matter to be referred to a select joint committee of Parliament and criticised the haste with which the Government was rushing in the House to pass the Bill.

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Stories in this Section
Lok Sabha passes Patents Bill with Left support
Fears over drug price rise unfounded: Kamal Nath

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