Agro-Environmental Sustainability and Intellectual Property Rights
The present book on Agro-Environmental Sustainability and Intellectual Property Rights examines the confronted challenges in agriculture and environment management with the introduction of intellectual property rights in agriculture by the World Trade Organization (WTO) under the framework of Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and Exclusive Marketing Rights (EMRs) resulted in an unequal treatment to Indian sovereignty over natural resources. There is no denying of the fact that the WTO has the potential to bite deep into the material well-being of Indian agricultural sector. The whole saga around patenting of haldi (turmeric), basmati, neem, karela (bitter gourd), kalajira (blackcumin), and brinjal clearly demonstrate widespread bio-colonisation by the multinational companies (MNCs) sponsored by the developed countries. Over the past more than two decades, there have been substantial changes in intellectual property rights regime at the international level, in particular in the WTO, WIPO and other international institutions have immediate impact on national legal intellectual property rights frameworks. The book critically analyses the various facets of the international intellectual property regime and its implications on national laws and policies related to agriculture, environment and intellectual property law in order to achieve the idea of sustainable development in the context of climate change and human rights discourse at international and national level. Under this backdrop the book also suggested some futuristic model law in order to govern the problem of agro-environmental sustainability by adopting the selected model of law according to their specific needs and conditions, which must addressed the rights of farmers, sustainable use of biological resources, prevention of bio-piracy, rights of the traditional community, fair and equitable benefit sharing and the realization of the basic human rights of the present and future generations. (jacket)
