India-UK FTA does not dilute New Delhi's right to issue compulsory licences: Official
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The India-UK free trade agreement does not dilute New Delhi's right to issue compulsory licences (CLs) and does not introduce any new preconditions for their issuance, an official said on Friday.The agreement was signed on July 24 in London.The official said that the sovereign authority to issue such licences remains entirely with the Government of India, as per existing law."The agreement's reference to voluntary licensing simply acknowledges global best practices that encourage collaborative solutions. It does not limit or dilute India's well-established right to issue CLs under a section of the Indian Patents Act, 1970," the official said.The remarks are important as economic think tank GTRI has stated that India has accepted language in the intellectual property chapter of the free trade agreement with the UK that subtly curtails its ability to issue compulsory licences, a critical tool for accessing life-saving technologies during emergencies.As per WTO (World Trade Organisation) agreement, a compulsory license can be invoked by a national government allowing someone else to produce a patented product or process without the consent of the patent owner in public interest.Only one CL has been issued so far for the cancer drug Nexavar (2012) and that too under exceptional public health circumstances."The FTA does not create any new precondition for issuing CLs. The sovereign authority to issue such licenses remains entirely with the Government of India, as per existing law," the official said.India's patent law continues to be recognized globally for balancing public health needs with innovation incentives.."The free trade pact does not alter this balance and in fact, it reaffirms India's policy autonomy," the government official said adding the pact's provision on disclosure of commercial working of patents is fully consistent with India's existing legal regime and the evolving needs of a modern innovation ecosystem.The official added that the India-UK trade agreement marks a new era of cooperation that supports both affordable access to medicines and high standards of innovation and IP protection.
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