DATA STORY: Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) in India

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The ingenuity of the mind used for creation of a commercial entity or societal use is considered as the Intellectual Property (IP) of the concerned person i.e. inventor. The inventor has a legal right over these properties or inventions, which are termed as Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs). IP protection is critical to foster innovation. Currently, IPRs cover patents, copyrights, trademarks, industrial designs, geographical indications (GI), layout designs, trade secrets and new plant varieties. Without protection of ideas, individuals, as well as businesses, would not reap the full benefits of their inventions and thus would focus less on R&D. 

Patents occupy a prominent position as global indicators for ranking of the world economies. In India, the patent system is administered by the office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (CGPDTM) under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

In the last three years — 2017-18 to 2019-20 — as many as 53,399 patent applications were filed from India of which 27,934 applications, that is 52 percent, were from Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Maharashtra topped with over 12,000 patent applications.

Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha filed less than 1,000 patent applications each while Chhattisgarh and Bihar filed just above 160 applications each. The North-Eastern States filed the least patent applications.

India’s global position, both in innovations and publications, has been rising over the years. According to the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2020, India’s GII ranking has improved significantly to 48 in 2020 from 81 in 2015. India made it to the top 50 in GII ranking for the first time in 2020. In terms of scientific publications, India ranked third in 2018 compared to sixth in 2014, according to the National Science Foundation (NSF) USA 2020. 

This data story aims to highlight trends of IPRs In India.