ESSENCE OF INDIAN KNOWLEDGE TRADITION

BIOPIRACY
Presented By:
Shrestha Naskar (CSE/20/095)
G.Y.Manisha (CSE/20/082)
Barnashree Mondal (CSE/20/078)
Soumya Sikha Dasgupta (CSE/20/110)
Jayita Ghorai (CSE/20/091)
Laboni Show (CSE/20/116)
Arunima Das (CSE/20/127)
Swastika Panda (CSE/20/123)
Sohini Hui (CSE/20/T-131)
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION WHY IS IT
1 TO TRADITIONAL 2 IMPORTANT TO
KNOWLEDGE PROTECT TK
CASE STUDY
3 BIOPIRACY 4
: TURMERIC
CASE STUDY: CASE STUDY:
5 6
NEEM BASMATI RICE
7 CONCLUSION
 TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE
Traditional knowledge (TK) is knowledge, know-how, skills and practices that
are developed, sustained and passed on from generation to generation within a
community, often forming part of its cultural or spiritual identity.

Traditional Knowledge is knowledge that derives from, or is rooted in the

traditional way of life of aboriginal
people. Or is the accumulated knowledge and understanding of the human place
in relation to the universe.
Or when the people with whom it originates are trying to preserve and renew
their cultural identity.
Types of Traditional Knowledge 1) Cultural 2) Artistic 3) Natural Resources 4)
Agricultural 5) Sacred
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO PROTECT TK

Protection of indigenous knowledge is essential in many aspects. Lack of

proper legal and policy frameworks for the protection of TK in the
developing countries provides a vacuum for the developed and
industrialized nations to exploit the traditional knowledge and resources
of indigenous communities. Protection of indigenous knowledge will
stop the multi-national pharmaceutical companies from the North, who
purport to discover herbal medicines owned and used by the indigenous
communities for thousands of years, from
patenting the medicinal plants and its derivatives at the expense of the
indigenous communities.
Bio piracy: when indigenous knowledge is
patented for profit

• Bio piracy happens when researchers or research organizations take

biological resources without official sanction, largely from less
affluent countries or marginalized people.

• Bio piracy is not limited to drug development. It also occurs in

agricultural and industrial contexts. Indian products such as the neem
tree, tamarind, turmeric, and Darjeeling tea, etc. have all been
patented by foreign firms for different lucrative purposes.
Bio piracy: when indigenous knowledge is
patented for profit(cont…)

• In 2000, WIPO members established an Intergovernmental Committee on

Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and
Folklore (IGC), and in 2009 they agreed to develop an international legal
instrument (or instruments) that would give traditional knowledge,
genetic resources and traditional cultural expressions (folklore) effective
protection.
 1
NEEM
Case Study: Neem (Azadirachta indica)

There are approximately 14 million neem trees (Azadirachta indica) in India.

Access to neem products was very cheap (if not free) and easy to get. It is a
tropical evergreen, related to the mahogany, that mainly grows in arid
regions of India and Burma and Southwest Asia and West Africa. The neem
tree has many versatile traits that can be traced back to the Upavanavinod,
an ancient Sanskrit treatise dealing with agriculture. This treatise cites the
neem tree as a cure for ailing soil, plants and livestock. The tree has been
referred to as the 'curer of all ailments' and the 'blessed tree' by both the
Hindu and Muslim population in India. The leaves and the bark have been
used to treat illnesses such as leprosy, ulcers, diabetes and skin disorder.
 2
TURMERIC
Case Study: Turmeric (Curcuma longa)
In India, the turmeric has been "a classic grandmother's remedy", applied
to cuts of children as an anti-parasitic agent, used as a blood purifier and
in treating the common cold for generations.It is also used as an essential
ingredient in many Indian dishes. It is of our traditional knowledge.In
1995, two expatriate Indians at the University of Mississippi Medical
Centre were granted U.S. Patent 5,401,504 on Use of Turmeric in Wound
Healing.
.
The patent was promptly challenged by Dr. R A Mashelkar, an Indian
scientist who has done much to awaken India to Intellectual Property
Rights issues, Director general of Council of Scientific and Industrial
Research (CSIR) (1995-2006).
 3
BASMATI RICE
 Case Study: Basmati Rice
• Originally from India and Pakistan, Basmati became a controversial 'issue' after
RiceTec, a Texas-based company, in 1997, patented some types of rice they
developed as "American basmati".
• RiceTec Inc, had been trying to enter the international Basmati market with brands
like "Kasmati" and "Texmati". Ultimately, the company claimed to have developed
a new strain of aromatic rice by interbreeding basmati with another variety.
• They sought to call the allegedly new variety as Texmati or American Basmati.
.
• Basmati Rice Patent Battle
• Rice Tec Inc, was issued the Patent number 5663484 on Basmati rice lines and
grains on September 2, 1997.
 Case Study: Basmati Rice
• This was objected to by two Indian nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)
- Centre for Food Safety, an international NGO that campaigns against
biopiracy, and the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and
Ecology, an Indian environmental NGO
• The Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research also objected to it. û They
sought trade protection for basmati rice of the Indian subcontinent and
jasmine rice of Thailand. They demanded
. amendment of U.S. rice standards
to specify that the term "basmati" can be used only for rice grown in India
and Pakistan, and jasmine for the Thai rice.
• The Indian government, after putting together the evidence, officially
challenged the patent in June 2000.
 CONCLUSION
This has prompted some countries to develop their own sui generis systems for
protecting traditional knowledge. However, the parameters and modalities are
being worked out. The broad objectives under sui generis systems would be
determination of protectable subject matter, ownership rights and procedure for
acquiring rights.. Furthermore, sui generis systems protected under national
law may not hold true for other countries. Therefore, many indigenous, local
communities and governments are pressing for an international legal
.
instrument. Recognizing and valuing traditional mode of creativity and
innovation as protectable intellectual property would definitely be an historic
shift in international law, empowering indigenous communities as well as
governments to have a say over the use of their traditional knowledge by
others.
 THANKS!
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