People's Democracy

Movement Launched Against Patents Ordinance

M K Pandhe and others leading the demonstration in front of parliament

THE strong opposition to the amendment of Indian Patents Act found expression in the first public protest held by the Joint Action Committee in New Delhi on January 5. Several hundreds of workers, students and youth held a dharna before parliament demanding the UPA government to rescind the ordinance it issued effecting the amendment.

The ‘Joint Action Committee Against Amendment of Indian  Patents Act’, which comprises of central trade unions, industrial and employees federations and mass organisations of peasants, agricultural workers, students, youth women, and science forums called for this demonstration to record its emphatic protest against the Third Amendment Ordinance on Patents Act recently promulgated by the UPA government.

The demonstration was addressed by M K Pandhe, CITU president, Tapan Sen, CITU secretary, Abani Roy, MP (UTUC), Santosh Ray (AICCTU)  Ram Pratap Sharma (TUCC), S P Shukla, former member of Planning Commission, Prasenjeet Bose (SFI) Kavita Krishnan (AISA), V P Saini (Kisan Sabha), B Mani (FMRAI) and others.

Stating that the proposed legislation replacing the ordinance is likely to come up in the next budget session, M K Pandhe warned it would ''spell a disaster'' for the country's industrial and agricultural sector. He asserted the Left organisations would stage a massive demonstration to voice their protest on the second day of the budget session next month.

Coming down heavily on the UPA government for ''ignoring the country's interests'', the speakers at the demonstration alleged  that the change in the present patent regime was being initiated  without proper safeguards for the country's agriculture and  industry, particularly the pharmaceutical sector.

The speakers called upon the toiling people to unitedly oppose this ordinance and build up a powerful movement countrywide to defeat the ordinance and force such changes in the patent regime which would adequately take care of the interests of the people and the domestic economy.

The Joint Action Committee firmly maintained that the patents ordinance resulting in a change over to product patent regime will severely affect the Indian industries and agriculture, particularly spelling doom for the domestic pharmaceutical industry and the agricultural sector. It is against the interest of the national economy and the people at large and is going to empower the foreign MNCs to dominate the Indian economy. It is going to affect health care of the common people by making medicine prices unaffordable. (INN)