Delhi University is planning to launch a certificate course on patent law to help students turn their research into a “TANGIBLE” product and give them a basic understanding of patent filing. This is the first time such a course will be conducted in the university. Patent laws are taught at Delhi University’s Faculty of Law as a part of the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) paper, and some of the university’s science courses include a chapter on the subject.
In higher education, there is a lot of research that has concrete results; However, people are not aware of it. How to make your research a real product? People are not aware of patent rules and patent laws. DU is planning to start a certificate course in this subject which will fill this gap.
Ms. Saluja said that the students would be given basic education on patent law and what to keep in mind while filing for a patent. He said that this course will be useful for those students of science who want to know about patent law for their research.
In May, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had also suggested that Delhi University should start a short-term diploma course on patent process. “Times are changing. Our country does not have invention patents. DU may start a short-term diploma course on patent process,” Mr. Pradhan said during the three-day international symposium of the university.
The University has constituted a committee to prepare the syllabus and other procedures for the course on Patent Law. A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention.
The newly constituted committee is headed by Professor D. Saluja, Medical Biotechnology Laboratory, BR Ambedkar Centre for Biomedical Research, University of Delhi. Ms. Saluja said that the course will help students understand what to keep in mind while filing for a patent, as many students do not know what is patentable and what is not.
At most universities and law schools, patent law is taught as a part of intellectual property rights (IPR), and not separately. There are only a few institutions in the country that offer a separate certificate or diploma course on patent law, including the Indian Patent and Trademark Institute and international intellectual property consulting firms.
