The National Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) policy is likely to pose a hurdle for affordable drug access, according to experts. The patent laws of the country are left intact. Section 3(d) of the Patents Act did not open up.

Also, the commitment to the Doha Declaration was underlined by the government, reaffirming flexibilities under TRIPS agreement to member states. One such flexibility is compulsory licensing, under which someone else producing a patented process or product is allowed by the government, without the patent owner’s consent.

Ms. Leena Menghaney, IP law expert and Access Campaigner at humanitarian aid organization Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), said, “With so much focus on turning all knowledge into patentable property, the big weakness in the document is that it is pitting innovation against access. There is no clarity in the section pertaining to commitment to Doha Declaration,”

“It is like saying that we reserve the right to give compulsory licences. But what is the point of reserving that right, if we are never actually going to issue licences because of pressure from the industry. Similarly, in the case of drugs for neglected disease, the IP policy fails to acknowledge that IP is a market-driven model. There will be serious impediments to access to drugs with this approach,” Ms. Menghaney said.

According to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Monopolies are loved by those who own monopolies as they will have commercial benefits.

-Sumana