New year with new Government and tradition.

India may be poor and home of largest number of poor people but people who get elected to any legislature are either rich or become the rich. How? Everyone know that in India.
2014 is witnessing a new kind of Government in Delhi. A Government in which Ministers travel in Public Transport (Bus or Metro Rail), like working class people, meeting people and talking people. No Cars and no coloured beacon or police pilot.
It is a first in 66 years since independence. How long will it last? Will it spread to other States? Will the Minister grow rich?
Question is not about the party in power or who will come to power. Question is will elected representatives start looking like representatives rather than Kings, Queens and Princes?

© Sandeep Bhalla

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Supreme Court of India on Patent Law

Product patent is something new to India. While we had process patent for nearly a century the product patent has been introduced hardly a decade age. In a recent case by Novratis AG, the Supreme Court of India refused to follow the line of reasoning adopted by American Courts on the subject in following words:

  • “We would like to say that in this country the law of patent, after the introduction of product patent for all kinds of substances in the patent regime, is in its infancy. We certainly do not wish the law of patent in this country to develop on lines where there may be a vast gap between the coverage and the disclosure under the patent; where the scope of the patent is determined not on the intrinsic worth of the invention but by the artful drafting of its claims by skilful lawyers, and where patents are traded as a commodity not for production and marketing of the patented products but to search for someone who may be sued for infringement of the patent.”
    (emphasis in italics added)

A very bold but at the same time scathing remark on the prevailing judicial interpretation in other parts of world. Supreme Court of USA is presently groping with a case relating to patent of part of human genome claiming the research is an invention and not a discovery. We wonder if its attention shall be drawn to harsh realities as observed by Supreme Court of India and quoted above.
Read more about Novratis case here.

Can the World Change?

‘World is not a perfect place’ is an understatement which can come not only from rich and effluent all over the world but also from middle class, comfortably settled in jobs, meals, sex and shelter without any apparent threat to most of it. Unaware of strife the billions suffering as subjects/citizens/guinea-pigs in a variety of situations. Most of educated people are unaware that presently one-third of land in the world is an active war zone. We live in comfort of ignorance shielded by our possessions and occupations, which may also include traveling to safe places. The last activity reinforcing the ‘belief’ of world being ‘just far enough’ from being perfect. This perception hardly requires any change in the world. But to those minuscule minority who can see and understand the way world is; the question of change is an inevitable reflection. Can the World change? Continue reading

Reforms for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India with legacy License/Quota Raj for citizens and native industries?

Green Chillies Fruit

Chilly image credit & © Sandeep Bhalla

India has a written constitution. According to 7th Schedule of this Constitution, the power to legislate is vested in Union/Central Parliament and State legislature. List 1 specifies the matters in respect of which Union Parliament can legislate. List 2 specifies the matters in respect of which State Parliament can legislate. List 3 is a Concurrent List i.e., the Central and State  both legislatures can legislate the matters specified therein. The constitution has also created a bias in favor of Union Parliament which is reflected by Article 254 which states that if a State Legislation is in conflict with Union Legislation, the latter will prevail.

Reforms for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India with legacy License/Quota Raj? What about reform for citizens and native industries? Continue reading

Tacit Confession of guilt by Prime Minister Man Mohan Singh on economic crises

The guilt:

The Congress Government headed by Prime Minister Dr. Man Mohan Singh has completed 8 years in office. Before that BJP was in Government for mere five years. Since independence of India in 1947 different Congress Governments have ruled for about five decades but to tackle with inflation has been its dismal failure on all occasions. The fact that Prime Minister admits that situation of the nation is as worse as it was in 1991 amounts to an admission of guilt because in 1991 he had blamed the misrule of other parties in last 3 years for the escalating fiscal problem. The fact that he and this Government is in power for 8 years and it could do nothing to prevent the situation, is nothing but an admission of guilt of mis-governance.

The proof of guilt of mis-governance of nation and economy: Continue reading