Punjab educational institutes pip industry in filing patents

Vijay C Roy

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 16

It seems educational institutes in Punjab are more aware than industry when it comes to intellectual property rights (IPRs). Punjab-based two educational institutes are among the top 10 applicants for patents from institutes and universities. As many as 207 patent applications were filed from Punjab in 2016-17. Out of this, 59 were filed from these two institutions.

Chandigarh Group of Colleges (CGC), SAS Nagar, and Chitkara University occupied the seven and eighth position, respectively. While the former has filed 30 applications, the latter filed 29 patent applications in 2016-17.

The Indian Institutes of Technology (collectively) with 400 applications occupied the first position while Amity University with 106 and Indian Institute of Science with 54 occupied second and third place, respectively.

CGC chairman Satnam Singh Sandhu said, “We have introduced research and innovation at undergraduate level to promote creative ideas. The patent applications filed by us suggest that students have a bent of mind towards innovation. To promote their ideas, we hold competition annually. The winner is provided funding and we also facilitate technology transfer.”

Gurharminder Singh, senior scientific officer, Punjab State Council for Science and Technology (PSCST), said, “We have conducted a number of workshops across the institutes in Punjab to increase awareness about the IPRs. We have also created IPR cells in universities and colleges. By featuring among the top institutes, these two institutes have proved that the students are very much aware about the IPRs.”

As compared to institutions, the industry seems to be laggard in filing patents. “Industry in Punjab, especially the SMEs, is reported to be losing millions in revenue due to lack of awareness about IPRs. The state has 1.90 lakh SMEs but it doesn’t reflect in patent filings,” said an IPR expert.

The top patent-filing states and UTs are Maharashtra (3,513), Karnataka (1,765), Tamil Nadu (2,003), Delhi (1,066), Telangana (798), Uttar Pradesh (625), Gujarat (620), West Bengal (460), Haryana (441), Kerala (276), Andhra Pradesh (271), Punjab (207), Madhya Pradesh (140), Rajasthan (181), Jharkhand (144), Orissa (103), Assam (68), Uttarakhand (64), Chandigarh (35), Bihar (26) and Chhattisgarh (22). During 2016-17, a total of 45,444 patent applications were filed across the country.