India: Pendency of Patent Applications Declines

The speed at which patent applications are examined has almost doubled in the country with the hiring of new patent examiners, bringing down the pendency substantially, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) has said. “The pendency of patent applications at examination stage has come down from 2.04 lakh as of March 31, 2017, to 1.72 lakh as of February 28, 2018,” according to a written reply to Lok Sabha by Minister of State of Commerce and Industry Mr. C. R. Chaudhary. He said 6,235 applications were examined in February 2018 as against 3,925 during the corresponding period during last year.

As many as 495 examiners of patents and designs have been recruited and 84 new posts of examiners and 95 posts of controllers have been sanctioned for patent offices, to expedite clearance of applications.

Computerised workflow, automation and use of information technology helped facilitate the examination work and optimise the speed and quality of examination, the reply stated. Timelines have been imposed to ensure speedy disposal, and the number of admissible adjournments has been limited under the amended patent rules. “Now, applications can be transferred electronically from any of the branches of Patent Office to another. Expedited examination and hearing through video-conferencing are also permitted,” the Minister informed. Patent offices have been established in Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai.