THE HINDU / Tuesday, April 25, 2000 / By Our Legal Correspondent
NEW DELHI, APRIL 24. The Centre today informed the Supreme Court that it would take steps within two months to challenge in a court in the United States, the patent granted to an American company for `basmati' rice.
The Solicitor-General, Mr.Harish Salve, gave this information to a three-Judge Bench comprising the Chief Justice, Dr. A.S. Anand, Mr. Justice Santosh N. Hegde and Mr. Justice S.N. Variava when the petitioner, Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology, pointed out to the court that the Government had not done anything on the patent issue despite an assurance given to this effect in 1998.
Ms. Indira Jaising, senior counsel for the Foundation, submitted that the delay by the government in taking action on the issue was harming the national interest.
Mr Salve said there were about 200 varieties of Basmati rice and patent was for a particular strand of rice.
He also submitted that the Government, which had taken expert advice on this issue in respect of which a lot of technical data had to be collected, might take two months to challenge the patent.
The Bench, while adjourning the matter by two months, asked the Government to indicate the steps taken by it on the issue at the next hearing.
(posted without permission)
