UPSC Prelims 2019 Question:

Consider the following statements:

1. According to the Indian Patents Act, a biological process to create a seed can be patented in India.
2. In India, there is no Intellectual Property Appellate Board.
3. Plant varieties are not eligible to be patented in India.
   
   

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Explanation:

• Under Section 3(j) of the Indian Patents Act, of 1970, plants and animals in whole or any of their parts including seeds, varieties, species (other than microorganisms), and the production of plants and animals through biological processes are not inventions, hence cannot get patented. So, statement 1 is not correct.
  
  
• Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) has been constituted by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in 2003 under the Trade Marks Act of 1999. Its jurisdiction was later extended to hear patent cases under the Patents (Amendment) Act of 2002, which divested these powers from the High Courts and extended it to the IPAB. So, statement 2 is not correct.
  
  
• According to Section 3(j) of the Indian Patents Act, 1970, plant varieties are not inventions, hence not eligible to get patented. So, statement 3 is correct.
  
  

Therefore, option (3) is the correct answer.

Subject: Environment | Environmental Acts and Policies