Kamal Nath to lay foundation stone of NIIPM today

Union Commerce Minister Kamal Nath will today lay the foundation stone of the new National Institute of Intellectual Property Management (NIIPM) here today.

Nagpur, Aug 18 : Union Commerce Minister Kamal Nath will today lay the foundation stone of the new National Institute of Intellectual Property Management (NIIPM) here today.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh will also be present on the occasion.

The NIIPM will cater to the needs of an Intellectual Property (IP) regime that is in line with the global norms while at the same time safeguarding national interests.

The setting up of the NIIPM closely follows the launch of the e-Filing facility for patent and trade mark applications by Kamal Nath on July 20.

NIIPM will encompass training, education and research, besides being a think tank of the government on important IP policy matters.

It will conduct training programmes for examiners of patents, designs, trade marks and geographical indications, IP professionals such as agents, attorneys and lawyers, and IP managers in business enterprises and research organisations.

Its education programmes will cover government officials, enforcement agencies such as police and customs, and judicial officers, besides academics.

Research will be carried out in a wide variety of subjects relating to Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) which have topical relevance. Inputs will be provided by the Institute based on analytical and empirical research to facilitate government decision-making in the area of IP policy and legislation.

The NIIPM will be a unique institute combining all the four functions. The establishment of the NIIPM will cost about Rs.22 crore.

The Government has recently completed the implementation of a Rs.153 crore modernisation programme which has seen the establishment of state-of-the-art modern integrated intellectual property offices at the four metros of Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.

Computerisation has also been introduced at all levels of functioning of the Intellectual Property Offices. This has resulted in an increase in patent and trademark applications as well as their grants.

Government is also planning to invest another Rs.300 crore in the next five years on further modernisation of the IP Offices so as to make them world class.

It has already moved an application with the World Intellectual Property Organisation to recognise the Indian Patent Office as an International Search Authority and an International Preliminary Examining Authority under the Patent Cooperation Treaty administered by that organisation.

Currently, there are only 12 such offices. On the trademark side, it is planning to become a member of the Madrid Protocol, a facilitative system for international trademarks.

ANI