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The Chief Justice of India NV Ramana today speaking at the 'National Seminar on Adjudication of IPR Disputes in India' said that the Judicial infrastructure needs to be improved keeping in mind that the vesting of the Intellectual property rights (IPR) jurisdiction back in the High Court comes at a time when the judiciary is already overburdened with the backlog.

CJI Ramana further said that it is an appropriate moment to build sufficient capacities in our High Courts, so that intellectual property litigation can be conducted efficiently and smoothly.

Mentioning the importance of IPR in the medical field CJI Ramana said that Intellectual property is a field of law that protects creativity and innovation. Its importance is also felt during the ongoing pandemic, he said.

"Innovation, and that too quick innovation, has become the order of the day. With the onset of the pandemic, vaccines and medications had to be researched, trials had to be conducted and commercial-scale manufacturing had to take place within a span of a few months," CJI Ramana added.

CJI Ramana further pointed out that today, India’s position as the Pharma hub of the globe is largely attributable to the existing IPR regime. Several pharmaceutical Multi-National Companies have been contracting Research & Development to national laboratories in India for the past two decades.

In addition to this, "there is a need for continuous training and up-gradation of skills as one of the major challenges before the Indian judiciary", CJI Ramana pointed out.

"With the advancement of technology, we are witnessing more complex issues in litigation, be it in IPR, IT and other fields. The complexities involved demand assistance from experts and specialists in the adjudication process," CJI Ramana said.

Further, talking about the vacant positions in the judicial system, CJI Ramana said, "Not only do we need to fill the existing vacancies on an urgent basis, but there is also a need to increase the number of judges. With better service conditions we may be able to attract more and more talents into our fold."