ICAR-Central Institute for Women in Agriculture, Bhubaneswar celebrated World Intellectual Property Day on 2nd May 2024 by organizing a National Webinar on “IP and the SDGs: Building our common future with innovation and creativity" through virtual mode. More than 60 participants comprising Scientists from ICAR-CIWA, AICRP on Women in Agriculture, Technical officers, Administrative staff, Senior Research Fellows and Young Professionals participated in the webinar. The programme began with the invocation of ICAR song. Er.Chaitrali Mhatre, Scientist and OIC (ITMU), ICAR-CIWA, while welcoming the Chairman, Guest Speaker and Participants gave brief overview of the webinar. Honorable Dr. Mridula Devi, Director, ICAR-CIWA, in her opening remarks highlighted the importance of celebrating World IP Day. Director further elucidated that, how IP serves as a catalyst for innovation and creativity by providing a framework in which developers can receive recognition for their efforts. Dr. Sukanta Kumar Sarangi, HOD, Division of Agricultural Technologies for Women focused attention on the importance of IP in Agriculture sector. Dr. Arun Kumar Panda, HOD, Division of Gender, Family and Community Studies, enlighted that how IP is a critical incentive for creativity and the necessity of the IPR awareness among the scientific community in order to encourage and amplify the innovators.

On this occasion a presentation on “Connecting the dots between IP and the SDGs Implication in ICAR” was delivered by Mr. Dhiren Pattanayak, Asst. Controller of Patents & Design and NIPAM officer, Indian Patent Office, Kolkata. The presentation highlighted the importance of IP rights like patents, copyrights, designs, trademarks in research areas and how Intellectual Property Rights, when strategically deployed, can drive progress towards all of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). He explained the 17 SDGs that the UN has approved for world peace and prosperity, emphasizing that effective invention documentation and protection are essential for achieving these interconnected goals through the adoption of modern tools and new innovations. The speaker also provided the tips and methodologies with practical examples to significantly expedite process of grant and instrumental in navigating the complexities of the IP application process. The presentation was followed by general discussion with participants and queries on different aspects of IP; filing patents, design registrations, obtaining copyright and trademarks etc. The programme ended with vote of thanks by Er. Chaitrali Mhatre.