Bill to ensure scientists benefit from own projects

Scientists working on Central government-funded research would soon be guaranteed a healthy share of any monetary benefits arising out of their projects.

Scientists working on Central government-funded research would soon be guaranteed a healthy share of any monetary benefits arising out of their projects. The Science and Technology ministry has drafted a new legislation that will make it mandatory for universities and institutions to share at least 30 per cent of the proceeds, royalty or licensing fees with the scientists who carried out the original research.

The scientists at Council for Scientific and Industrial Research CSIR already get a 40 per cent share, but that is just because it happens to be one of the better organised scientific establishments in the country. At many other universities and institutions there is no standard practice and the procedures followed in matters of patenting are amateurish.

This Bill, therefore, is not just aimed to be an incentive for good work but also to encourage the scientific community to obtain patents for every research that has the remotest possibility of being put to commercial use. 8220;The idea is to incentivise original research and lay claim to intellectual property rights on them,8221; said Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal.

The Bill seeks to lay down guidelines for institutions in matters of patenting and define standard procedures to be followed. As of now, only a miniscule proportion of original research actually results in claim of intellectual property rights. 8220;Scientists and institutions in this country need to change the style of working,8221; said former Director-General of CSIR RA Mashelkar.

8220;Research, once published, cannot be patented. The scientists need to be encouraged to file the applications for patent before publishing their research.8221;

Mashelkar said a recent study had found many Japanese and European companies had filed for patents based on research papers published by Indian scientists.

8220;We have lost thousands of patents in the fields of life sciences, nanotechnology and others because our scientists did not apply for patents. 8220;That is why this Bill is very significant. It will bring awareness and also clarity of procedures,8221; he added.

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The Bill is modeled on the lines of Bayh-Dole Act in the US enacted in 1980. That Act, Mashelkar said, had helped in bringing about new products and technologies to the fore and saw a surge in small companies making a lot of money.