Traditional Knowledge Act been scuttled?
This should have been India’s hour of glory. With the global community anxious to come up with a comprehensive regime on biological diversity, a group of environmentalists got together to frame an act dealing with the protection, conservation and management of traditional knowledge relation to biological diversity. The initiative was taken by food specialist Devinder Sharma who heads the Forum for Biodiversity and Food Security. Twenty five experts, including Prof. R. Ramakrishna and Prof. M.K. Ramesh of the National Law School, Bengaluru.
Sunita Shreedharan, who heads the SKS Law firm, and TC James, an expert on patent and former director at department of industrial promotion and policy, were involved in the first brainstorming session which took place three years ago. “The issue had been hanging fire for 15 years and we decided to take the initiative on how to protect traditional knowledge and also how to benefit those who had been protecting this knowledge through the centuries,” said Mr Sharma.
A working group of 25 members was set up to frame a draft law which was titled Rules for Protection, Conservation and Effective Management of Traditional Knowledge Relating to Biological Diversity 2009.
Interestingly, after Jairam Ramesh became minister of environment, the draft law had his blessings and he was keen to push the bill in Parliament.
Mr P.L. Gautam, former chairman of National Biodiversity Authority (NBA), however, is reported to have pointed out to Mr Ramesh that the NBA mandate already had a provision for the traditional knowledge act to be incorporated under its ambit.
Mr Sharma said, “The draft act was therefore put up on the NBA website for comments and many of which were incorporated in the subsequent meetings.”
Activists, however, lament that under pressure from the industry, the draft was suddenly taken off the website and Ficci has been given the task of preparing a new act. “We could have been the first country to have come up with an IPR but the draft was scuttled in order to make it pro-industry,” says an activist.
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