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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said India is at a stage where growth and the focus on development have got to be strengthened from every side and intellectual property rights (IPRs) have an important role in it. Sitharaman mentioned that 28,000 patents were granted last year as opposed to 4,000 in 2013-2014 and the last year also witnessed registration of 2.5 lakh trademarks and over 16,000 copyrights, which will have a very strong ripple effect on the economy.

She stated ‘So, these are not small numbers. This is the strength of the economy, in supporting such innovations and copyrights, all of which when scaled up are going to have a very strong ripple effect into the economy itself and that would generate its own ecosystem and revenues.’ She stated that the central government encouraged start-ups while protecting their IPRs as the boost would not have been possible with only giving up restrictions.

She also highlighted the importance of innovation for the economy and said that ‘if general manufacturing and general production give you a level of 3 (on a scale of 10), innovative activities bring in about 7 to 8.’ She added ‘As we were removing restrictive rules and regulations, we were also making sure that we give a framework within which they can work. Not just start-ups, but we were also supporting R&D in this country.’