Kerala IPR Academy on the anvil: Law Department
Author: R.S. Praveen Raj | 
In his address to the Legislative Assembly on 2oth February 2008, the Governor of Kerala had announced that an Intellectual Property Rights Academy would be constituted in the State. Of late, it is learnt that the proposal for the constitution of the IPR Academy is under deliberations at vide file no. 20311/nodal(1)/08/Law. It was informed by Special Secretary of Law Department (who is also the appellate authority of Law department under Right to Information Act), while disposing an RTI Appeal requesting the following information on IPR Academy
i) Aims/Mandates of the IPR Academy
ii) Reasons for proposing an IPR Academy (To know whether it is essential for Kerala)
iii) Proposed budget, proposed location and proposed area of the CAMPUS for the IPRAcademy
iv) Constitutional details of the proposed IPR Academy including the functions of councils/committees (if any), faculty and Infrastructure.
v) The progress report and the latest status on setting up the IPR Academy.
Vide Letter 10508/Nodal I/09/Law dated 24.06.2009, he stated that his department is unable to give any further information in respect of the above RTI Queries than what was offered by the Public Information Officer (and Additional Secretary) vide his RTI Reply dated 1372/Nodal I/09/Law dated 22.01.2009, which stated plainly that the IPR Academy was not constituted and the various details relating to the same was not finalized.
While SECULAR CITIZEN appreciates the trustworthiness of the Law department in expressing the difficulty to disclose the information, reliable sources indicate that the file has gone through many approval stages. Of Course, an incomplete file cannot be put up for the approval of competent authorities. Though the RTI Act promises complete transparency in the governmental system, the relics of the colonial era is still playing its part to shy the Govt. departments from disclosing the contents of a file pending cabinet approval. It may be appropriate to mention here that the Kerala State Information Commission stated in February 2009, while deciding a similiar case, that the access to a public document could not be denied to a citizen for long on the excuse that the document was pending with the State Cabinet.
Having decided to make IPR compulsory in curriculum from under graduate courses onwards, Kerala Govt. should speed up the process of constituting the IPR Academy. The Academy can intensify IPR training efforts in a State, which starves for IPR professionals.
A larger cross-section of scientific workers in the State are not aware of the implications of IPR. It is also essential to give appropriate training to the police personnel for facilitating effective enforcement of IPRs, especially copyrights and related Rights. Awareness on protecting traditional knowledge from private appropriation is another area of concern for Kerala. So it is imperative that the IPR Academy be constituted at the earliest. R.S. Praveen Raj
i) Aims/Mandates of the IPR Academy
ii) Reasons for proposing an IPR Academy (To know whether it is essential for Kerala)
iii) Proposed budget, proposed location and proposed area of the CAMPUS for the IPRAcademy
iv) Constitutional details of the proposed IPR Academy including the functions of councils/committees (if any), faculty and Infrastructure.
v) The progress report and the latest status on setting up the IPR Academy.
Vide Letter 10508/Nodal I/09/Law dated 24.06.2009, he stated that his department is unable to give any further information in respect of the above RTI Queries than what was offered by the Public Information Officer (and Additional Secretary) vide his RTI Reply dated 1372/Nodal I/09/Law dated 22.01.2009, which stated plainly that the IPR Academy was not constituted and the various details relating to the same was not finalized.
While SECULAR CITIZEN appreciates the trustworthiness of the Law department in expressing the difficulty to disclose the information, reliable sources indicate that the file has gone through many approval stages. Of Course, an incomplete file cannot be put up for the approval of competent authorities. Though the RTI Act promises complete transparency in the governmental system, the relics of the colonial era is still playing its part to shy the Govt. departments from disclosing the contents of a file pending cabinet approval. It may be appropriate to mention here that the Kerala State Information Commission stated in February 2009, while deciding a similiar case, that the access to a public document could not be denied to a citizen for long on the excuse that the document was pending with the State Cabinet.
Having decided to make IPR compulsory in curriculum from under graduate courses onwards, Kerala Govt. should speed up the process of constituting the IPR Academy. The Academy can intensify IPR training efforts in a State, which starves for IPR professionals.
A larger cross-section of scientific workers in the State are not aware of the implications of IPR. It is also essential to give appropriate training to the police personnel for facilitating effective enforcement of IPRs, especially copyrights and related Rights. Awareness on protecting traditional knowledge from private appropriation is another area of concern for Kerala. So it is imperative that the IPR Academy be constituted at the earliest. R.S. Praveen Raj