Next round of India-UK talks in August; IPR, rules of origin, BIT to be taken up
New Delhi: As India and UK inch closer to signing a free trade agreement, both countries are set to take up contentious parts of the FTAs such as Intellectual property rights (IPR), rules of origin, Bilateral Investment Treaties (BIT) during the next round of talks in August, senior government official said on Friday. - Talks on IPR are crucial as India is the world’s largest provider of generic drugs, accounting for a fifth of global supply. The low cost of generics mean they comprise about 70-80% of the domestic retail market and are crucial to the well-being of the aging Indian population.
In contrast, the UK is one of the leading countries in life science innovation and is seeking a strong IPR protection. Mint had earlier reported that India is unlikely to budge from its opposition to the provisions on regulatory data protection and patent extension in free trade talks with the EU and the UK. Regulatory data protection or data exclusivity have been among EU’s demands since 2013 but continues to be a red line for India.
A patent term extension allows secondary patenting or ‘evergreening’, a technique used by corporations to prevent the entry of generic competitors. Extension is typically sought for additional patents on the original drug, even flippant ‘modifications’ such as new dosages or combinations. Many pharma companies are evergreen by making minor changes to their drugs just before the patent expires at 20 years.
During the last session India and UK managed to close matters related to auto and spirits completing 19 out of the 26 chapters, the official stated. Market access for these two items are among the UK’s strong offensive interests which saw lengthy discussions. "We are very close and are trying to
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