India’s IPR stance promotes affordable medicines: GTRI

New Delhi: India’s stand on intellectual property rights (IPRs) and pharma issues in proposed trade agreements balances innovation with public health needs, ensures availability of affordable medicines and promotes growth of generic medicine industry, a GTRI report said on Friday.

Think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said that by opposing demands of developed nations on issues like ‘data exclusivity’ and ‘patent linkage’ in free trade agreements (FTAs), India ensures that generic drug manufacturers get greater market access and cost of life-saving medicines gets reduced significantly.

“India’s approach underscores a commitment to balancing innovation with public health needs, adopting a flexible interpretation of TRIPS to align with its developmental goals, and preventing the establishment of unfair monopolies, especially in the pharmaceutical sector,” the GTRI paper said.