The Hindu : Plea to take up Ayurveda patent issue

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Mar 28, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Plea to take up Ayurveda patent issue

By Our Staff Reporter

KOCHI, MARCH 27. A meeting of Ayurvedic doctors and associates held here today under the auspices of the IPR Awareness Forum, expressed serious concern over the practice of acquiring patent rights on Ayurvedic compounds by companies in foreign countries. It called for concerted efforts by the Government in coordination with various agencies to protect the intellectual property rights pertaining to Ayurveda.

K. Jyothilal, Professor of Government Ayurveda College, Thiruvananthapuram, and convener of the Ayurveda Protection Council, said applications seeking patent rights had been filed abroad for at least 65 items in the Ayurvedic stream. The move had several implications but there was no authority to explain the complexity of the issue. Proper information was not available on the patent applications filed abroad. Nor was there a monitoring agency in India which could disseminate the necessary information. It was for the Government to show the way by mobilising its resources to protect the inherited knowledge in Ayurveda, he said.

Pointing out that Indians were not vigilant against IPR violations, Prof. Jyothilal said fighting IPR cases in foreign courts of law involved heavy expenses.

He demanded an inquiry into the Jeevani issue involving the claim put forth by a foreign company for patent on an Ayurvedic preparation. The Ayurvedic drug was developed by a Government institute, the Tropical Botanical Gardens and Research Institute (TBGRI), Thiruvananthapuram. How could the technology be transferred to a private entity in India, he asked. He wondered whether such an act had led to the present situation. Not only Ayurveda, Indian concepts such as Yoga and Vastu were also under threat in the new patents regime, he said.

Inaugurating the programme, Justice Narayana Kurup said the Indian heritage should not be allowed to be stolen by unscrupulous business interests abroad.

C.A. Raman, retired Director of Ayurveda and K. Radhakrishnan Nair, president of the IPR Awareness Forum, were among the speakers.

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