India & the World Trade Organization |
Why EMRs? The TRIPs agreement provides for product patents to be extended to all substances, except plants and animals. However, developing countries were permitted a 10-year transition period to extend product patents. In the Interim, they were required to grant EMRs to protect the rights of inventors in two areas-pharmaceuticals and agricultural chemicals. Hence, this is in fulfillment of the TRIPs obligation. EMRs provide exclusive rights only for sale of the product, whereas product patents provide exclusive rights both for manufacture and sale. Under the EMR route, it would still be possible for an inventor in India to develop another process for the manufacture of the same product. The pharmaceutical industry would, therefore, continue to have the right to develop alternative methods of production of a pharmaceutical product and to obtain protection over the same. |