Panjab University organises National Seminar under Azadi ka AmritMahotsav

Chandigarh, August 29, 2022: As part of the National Intellectual Property Awareness Mission (NIPAM), launched by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India in 2021, the DST-Centre for Policy Research (CPR) and the Department of Biotechnology, Panjab University, Chandigarh, organised a national seminar on intellectual property rights. The National Webinar was conceived as part of the 'AzadikaAmritMahotsav' with the intention of increasing IP awareness amongst the faculty, research experts, and students of Panjab University, Chandigarh.

Prof. Y P Verma, Registrar, PU, Chd, presided over the opening remarks and emphasised the economic and intellectual significance of IP for young researchers and students. The seminar was led by Mr. Shailendra Singh, Examiner of Patents and Designs, Indian Patent Office, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, New Delhi, as a resource person. Mr. Singh, who is affiliated with the NIPAM mission, defended the value of intellectual property in the contemporary era and its existence in nearly every sphere of life. He shared with young students how innovations can lead to IP value and how students can file IPs and solve society's problems.

In India, 22% of the population is between the ages of 19 and 20, and by 2030, 60-70 percent of the population will be in the age bracket of 40 years, therefore the youthful population might play a significant part in innovation/intellectual property generation, he said. Prof. Kashmir Singh, Coordinator, DST-CPR, and Prof. D D Singh, Chairperson, Department of Biotechnology, Punjab University, Chd., urged students to investigate intellectual property when doing research and academic projects. Over 200 faculty members, research scholars, and students from PU and institutes in and around Chandigarh attended the seminar. Participants learned about intellectual property rights, process to file and draft a patent, and how to derive socioeconomic value from a commercialisedan IP.