India "needs stronger IP laws"

In a sign of the growing confidence of India's business and political community, as well as of the opportunities evident in the biotechnology industry, the case for a strong law to protect patents and intellectual property generally is gaining ground in a country where generic drug manu-facturers have dominated the market.

Neesha Patel, a research analyst at McKinsey & Co, the global management consultancy firm, believes that the time is right for the Indian government to protect IP rights in the pharmaceutical sector, because Indian drugmakers are capable both technically and financially to engage in serious R&D projects. Writing in the Express Pharma on-line magazine, Mr Patel notes: "over the past decade, India has shown excellence in scientific performance, as evidenced by number and quality of publications made each year in international journals." He added: "however, its technological and commercial performance is low, as indexed by the number of patents issued per unit of invest-ment made in R&D."

"Clarity of regulation" is key