ABSTRACT
This chapter highlights the importance of nanotechnology in the field of healthcare, and potential for Indian research and development of nanomedicines with effective intellectual property (IP) protections. It then looks to the past, to review developments at the time of India’s reintroduction of product patent protection for pharmaceutical products under the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) (effective January 1, 2005), which fell short of the aspirations of India’s science and technology leaders at that time. It further considers progress made over the past 15 years in building awareness of the need for effective IP protection for India’s full inclusion in the coming nanomedicines revolution. In this context, the chapterreviews the ongoing need for intellectual property reforms to ensure effective protection for nanomedicine patents and related confidential, commercially valuable research data, also known as Regulatory Data Protection (RDP), and the potential for Indian eminence in the global nanomedicines revolution.
