-Live Mint SC rejects Novartis's patent plea for Glivec, says it does not meet any standard of novelty or inventiveness In a landmark judgement, India's apex court rejected Swiss drug maker Novartis AG's legal challenge aimed at securing a patent for blockbuster anti-cancer drug imatinib mesylate, branded Glivec in the country. The verdict, which is seen as a setback to multinational pharmaceutical companies operating in India, may influence a rash of pending disputes...

-Reuters Global drugmakers, battered by recent intellectual property decisions in the country, are girding for a landmark court ruling on Monday with broad consequences for their ability to sell lucrative patented medicines in the country. Supreme Court is due to decide on April 1 whether or not Swiss giant Novartis AG's cancer treatment Glivec deserves a patent in the country. "Big Pharma is nervous because nothing has gone in their favour in the...

-The Hindu Justice Prabha Sridevan’s judgment permitting the production and sale of a generic version of a cancer drug is a victory for patients. It posits the public interest, especially in matters of health care, right at the heart of intellectual property rights in India Monday was a remarkable day for cancer patients in India. To them, the country said — “we care.” I am talking about the astounding decision by Justice...

-Global Research The widely held belief is that genetically modified ‘terminator seeds’ are not available on the commercial market anywhere. Since 2001, there has been a de facto worldwide moratorium on the use of terminator technology (UN Convention on Biological Diversity). By definition, such seeds are genetically engineered to make them sterile and unusable for replanting, resulting in farmers having to buy new seeds from a central supplier each year. Under Article...

It is said that only God and a few good men and women run India. One such man is P H Kurien. For readers unfamiliar with his name, Kurien was India's Controller General of Patents, Designs & Trade Marks until March 12, 2012. On March 9, 2012, just three days before he left office, he issued the first-ever compulsory licence in India for the manufacture of a drug still under patent....