India gave Gilead a patent for sofosbuvir whereas Malaysia has issued a compulsory licence for the hepatitis C drug
"NEW INDIA" is a much-discussed phenomenon, standing for different things to different groups. If it is projected by the Narendra Modi regime as one free of the taints of the past, to political opponents and civil society it signifies a nation lacking in liberal values and other democratic virtues. There is yet another new India that is emerging and this is related to patents and access to medicines. India’s Patent Office is no longer as careful as it used to be in weeding out patent claims on drugs that lack novelty and inventiveness. In other words, it is no longer applying strictly Section 3d of the Patent Act which bars the grant of patents to incremental changes in old molecules.
This story is from the October 1, 2017 edition of Down To Earth.
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This story is from the October 1, 2017 edition of Down To Earth.
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