Mangalore : The seminar on Academia Sensitization Training in Intellectual property Rights “Training the Trainer workshop” was a joint organization of the various departments of St. Aloysius College including Post graduate Departments of Biotechnology, Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Biochemistry, Food Science and Technology and Undergraduate Department of Biotechnology in collaboration with the Visvesvaraya Industrial Trade Centre (VITC), Govt. of Karnataka. The VITC is a designated Nodal Agency of the state for promotion of International Trade from Karnataka, supervised by an autonomous body constituted by the Govt. of Karnataka.
Over 250 student and staff participants from various colleges in and around Mangalore witnessed and interacted with expertise in the field of Intellectual Property rights namely Dr Arvind Vishwanatham , Mangaing Partner, Xcellent IP solutions Bangalore and Mr V. Raghuram, IP specialist, Technology Commercialization Expert.
Dr Melwyn D’Cunha SJ was the convener of the programme while Dr Asha Abraham, the Organizing Secretary, the two being the core pillars for the success of the well initiated event. Rev Fr Swebert D’Silva S J welcomed the gathering. The programme was inaugurated by Ms Prabhavathi Rao, WTO & Relay Cell, Centre for export promotion, Bangalore, who in her speech gave the audience a gist of the ideas of patenting and how IPR can be applied in various fields. The inaugural function was followed by informative sessions by the expertise.
Dr Arvind Vishwanatham in his talk humored the audience with his remarkable skills of interacting with the participants. He laid emphasis on the lag that India shows with respect to other nations in the area of IP. He briefed the audience about the importance and principles of IPR with day to day examples. He also familiarized the participants regarding the Eight types of IPR – Trademarks, Geographical indications, Copyrights, Patent, Industrial designs, SICL designs, plant varieties and Trade secret. Prior Art Search – its importance and ways to explore registered patents (US patents and foreign patents) was also touched upon with relevant web links, commercial databases and national Patent office database websites for the benefit of the participants.
Mr V. Raghuram, being a technology commercialization expert threw light on the same area. He mentioned about various aspects of patent filling notably the Intellectual Property Policy. He also explained the criteria for patentability for a tangible as well as intangible property. The Audience was familiarized with the various steps involved in patent applications and the oppositions.He also dealt with topics such as identification of potential patents, patent commercialization techniques, IP enforcement and management and maximizing profits.
The day-long seminar ended with many take away ideas and clarifications regarding IPR. Dr Smitha Hegde, Associate Professor, Post graduate Department of biotechnology proposed the vote of thanks.
The seminar was indeed a great success to witness large number of participants who could upgrade their knowledge regarding IPR.
