NEW DELHI(PTI): India has ‘described as “unwarranted” the U.S. action designating it as a priority foreign country under its special 301 legislation for retaliatory trade practices,
Union commerce minister Pranab Mukherjee Friday said India notes with regret the decision of the U.S. Govt. to continue to designate India as a priority foreign country under its special 301 legislation for alleged deficiencies in India’s patent system.
It has been India’s consistent stand that such issues were best resolved through the multilateral system, Mukherjee said in the Jower house of the parliament (Lok Sabha), adding unilateral action by any country must be avoided.
He said trade related intellectual property nights (trips) is a subject of negotiations under the ongoing Uruguay round of multilateral trade negotiations,
Referring to patents, he said, the availability of drugs at affordable prices was a matter of foremost concern to India.
In India’s view, Mukherjee said, a patent system must recognize both the rewarding of an inventor and vital public interest needs.
He said India would continue to impress upon the U.S. that these issues must be resolved through the multilateral system and any unilateral action on its part is “unwarranted.”
Article extracted from this publication >> May 14, 1993
