The Hindu : 130 crore for modernising infrastructure

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Apr 27, 2003

National

National

130 crore for modernising infrastructure

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI APRIL 26. The Centre has committed Rs. 130 crores to modernise the intellectual property administrative infrastructure in tandem with the existing legislative initiatives and modernised laws on patents, designs, trademarks and geographical indications.

Disclosing this here today, the Commerce and Industry Minister, Arun Jaitley, said the Government had decided to set up world-class intellectual property offices in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai as a strategic response to globalisation.

Laying the foundation for an IP office here, he said that land had been finalised and construction work awarded for setting up offices in the other three metros. They were scheduled to become operational by 2004.

The objective of establishing the offices was to provide customer-valued and globally respected services for inventors, the trading and business community and to encourage creative and innovative activities while ensuring access to the latest scientific and technical information to domestic users.

Mr. Jaitley referred to the new IP awareness and promotion initiatives and indicated that the Government was looking at a comprehensive strategy to optimise the benefits of the knowledge revolution. Some of the major achievements of the modernisation initiatives included modernisation of the existing infrastructure, completion of initial computerisation and undertaking comprehensive computerisation operations.

Digitisation of records, recruitment of additional examiners, zero pendency of trademark and patent applications and enactment of modernised IP laws, covering patents, designs, trademarks and geographical indications were counted by the Minister as the other achievements.

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