The government has invited comments from the public on reviewing the organisational structure of the office of the controller general of patents, designs, trademarks and geographical indications (CGPDTM) to make it more responsive to the needs of Intellectual Property (IP) holders and users while
enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of its operations.
The department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP), in a a discussion paper, said that given the radically different skill requirements of trademark and patent office staff, the operational difficulties and the present challenges being faced by CGPDTM and raised the question whether it was important to establish an independent office for the trademarks and geographical indications registry.
"Given the sensitivity of Patent law and practice in India and also the experience in other major intellectual property offices would it be appropriate to consider making the Office of CGPDTM autonomous? Is it possible to bifurcate the two offices and make the Trade Marks Registry and the Patent and Design Office two autonomous organisations?," the paper said.
The CGPDTM, a field formation of the DIPP, is responsible for registration and management of four intellectual property rights (IPR), namely patents, trade marks, geographical indications and designs.
The DIPP had taken an initiative to outsource some part of the prior art search of the Patent office to CSIR.
"Are there likely pitfalls that the department must take precautions against? What could be such precautions?," the discussion paper said adding whether it was a similar outsourcing including employment of temporary but qualified personnel exercise possible in case of trademarks where more than 400,000 trademark applications are pending at various stages.