Government to unveil IPR policy in 2 months: Amitabh Kant

NEW DELHI: Government will come out with a national Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) policy in the next couple of months, which will be one of the "finest" in the world, DIPP Secretary Amitabh Kant said today.

"India in the next two months will be coming out with a completely new and one of the finest IPR policies in the world," Kant said at an Indo-German Business Roundtable here.

He was responding to a comment by a German company's representative that India's intellectual property rights (IPR) regime "hampers growth" of their firms in the country.

"Besides, on the problems faced by the German defence companies in doing business in India, Kant said: "We will have a new defence procurement policy very, very shortly."

India, which is a major importer of defence equipment, has taken steps like relaxed foreign direct investment norms to boost local manufacturing.

In the last five years, India has paid over Rs 1 lakh crore to foreign firms for acquisition of equipment for the armed forces.

Under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, DIPP (Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion) had prepared and circulated the draft IPR policy and invited public comments last year.

Subsequently, the government took inputs for the policy from all departments concerned and stakeholders. The policy, once finalised, will be sent to the Cabinet for approval.