CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (CSIR-IIIM) successfully organized the Rashtriya Boudhik Sampada Mahotsav (National Intellectual Property Festival) here today at CK Atal Auditorium of the institute. This event, which brought together intellectual minds to explore the significance of intellectual property rights in fostering innovation, coincided with the World IP Day.  With the theme “IP and the SDGs: Building Our Common Future with Innovation and Creativity,” the festival aimed at delving into how innovative ideas could contribute to sustainable development Goals.Dr.Saguna Dewan, Chief Scientist at Innovation Protection Unit (IPU), CSIR HQ, New Delhi, delivered the Keynote lecture on “Challenges and Solutions in International Patent Protection”, and threw light on the critical aspects of international patent filings. Her talk encompassed various facets of the patent prosecution process and the significance of securing patents on a global scale. She has underlined the importance of international patent filings and gave a detailed overview of the patent prosecution.

Dr.Paromita Banerjee, Principal Scientist at CSIR-URDIP, Pune has delivered an online lecture on the importance and methodologies of prior art search in the context of intellectual property (IP) and patenting. Dr. Banerjee highlighted the importance of conducting a comprehensive prior art search, by identifying relevant patents, scientific literature, technical reports, and other sources of prior art. Inventors can gain valuable insights into the state of the art, identify potential obstacles to patentability, and refine their patent strategy accordingly, she added.Dr. Zabeer Ahmed, Director CSIR-IIIM, in his presidential remarks, highlighted the institute’s dedication to promoting intellectual property rights and innovation. He emphasized the significance of intellectual property in fostering innovation and sustainable development, stressing its pivotal role in nurturing ideas setting the stage for meaningful discussions. He also discussed government policies supporting start-up innovations, and urged young researchers to prioritize patenting. He reaffirmed the institute’s commitment to support societal goals. Underscoring the importance of such events in guiding researchers, Dr. Zabeer appreciated the organizing team and keynote speakers for making this event a great success.

Earlier Dr.Kancherla Prasad, Senior Scientist, in his welcome address, gave the detail of the event and shared insights on patentability criteria. Dr. Prasad emphasized that novelty; inventive step and industrial applicability are the fundamental criterion for patentability of any invention. He discussed the types of patentable subject matter that are eligible for patent protection, such as products, processes, pharmaceutical compositions, and patenting aspects of biotechnological inventions & traditional knowledge thereof.Prominent among other scientists present were Dr.Dhiraj Vyas, Dr.Sumit Gandhi, Dr. Qazi Naveed Ahmed, Dr. Deepika Singh (HODs), Dr Shashank Singh, Dr.Sheikh Tasduq Abdullah, Dr.Suphla Gupta, Dr.Prasoon Kumar Gupta & Dr.Amit Nargotra (Sr.Pr. Scientists).Dr.Love Sharma conducted the proceedings while as Er. Abdul Rahim, Chief Scientist & Head of RMBD & IST Division presented a formal vote of thanks.