New Delhi, Apr 26 (KNN)  The amended patent rules give monetary relief to small entities filing for patents and trademarks online.  However, awareness about intellectual property should be enhanced to boost filing of applications.
 
This was said by Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Amitabh Kant at a conference on 'Fostering Innovations and Creativity in Indian Industry through Intellectual Property for Higher Growth Trajectory' organized here today to mark World IP Day.
 
"In the recently amended Patent Rules, we have given substantial concessions in all types of patent fees to small entities. Online filing of all forms in patents and trademarks has been introduced which will facilitate the users of the system to file their applications directly to the IP offices by using facilities which in the long run will save their time, money and efforts. The monetary relief has been provided through the amendment of patent rules to the applicants filing their documents by online mode," said Kant.
 
"Innovation and creativity is the key mantra for achieving global competitiveness and organizations such as FICCI can become the key facilitators in this regard," he said at the event organized by FICCI in association with Intellectual Property Office (IPO).
 
On the low level of IP awareness, Kant, said, "When we look at the domestic filing of patent applications, we find that it has been around 20-22 per cent only. The low level of IP awareness in all sectors, lack of knowledge on IP creation, protection and utilization and benefits of IPRs on the part of industries, academic institutes and public funded organizations, and PSUs are the main reasons. Hence, there is an urgent need to build up IP awareness by putting coherent efforts at all levels for augmenting domestic filing of IP applications and enhance our global competitiveness."
 
He urged the industry, R&D centers and academia to come forward with strong determination for promotion of IP in their respective sectors so that IP-based industrial and socio-economic growth is achieved for our country. 
 
The conference brought to light that innovations and protecting innovations are smart business strategies that enable companies to successfully commercialize IP. Creators and innovators should be proactive in protecting their intellectual assets.
 
While globalization and digital revolution have magnified the role of innovation and knowledge in the development process of human ingenuity; innovation and technology have become key drivers of economic growth and competitiveness in the knowledge based innovative economy.
 
It is also recognized that a well-functioning and balanced intellectual property system is an essential requisite for long term development of a global and national innovation and creativity.
 
Offering his comments, Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademark, Government of India, Chaitanya Prasad, said, "An ecosystem in the form of institutions, incentives, policies and the right tools can shoot up activities in the country at all levels."
 
Emphasizing the need of innovation, "The immediate need for a developing country like ours is to make maximum efforts to find out ways to translate innovations into affordable knowledge-products in order to serve the public," he said.
 
The emphasis of the IP Office, among other things, has been on encouraging filing of patents and trademarks, particularly by SMEs, increasing transparency by introducing dynamic facilities on its official website, and on increasing necessary human resource, he added.
 
Pointing out that India today has a climate conducive for innovation; President of FICCI Sidharth Birla said that an IP compliant regime can encourage more innovations.  (KNN/ES)