Islamabad: Today chairman IPO (intellectual Property organization) Hameed Ullah Jan Afridi chaired a meeting regarding plant breeding rights. He said that organization is responsible to save intellectual rights but due to previous ignorance, it itself doesn’t have “plant breeding law” but we have submitted the bill to standing agricultural committee and have written for approval. Until and unless we have no law of plant breeding we cannot achieve intellectual recognition of our plant varieties, “he said”.
Director IPO, Mr. Misaq told to Chairman that our variety of rice had been taken by Indian Sikhs, and there they named it “Shabnam” and now this is recognized over the world by Indian patents. He added further that we have hundreds of mangoes varieties but until and unless, we have not formulated laws of “PBR” we will be unable to protect and get international recognition of these varieties. Chairman said, “we are rich in genetic and human resources but we need to pay immediate attention to protect national assets.
Chairman said that in next meeting, it will be decided in the presence of expert officers and seeds industrialists, that weather patents or suigenics is better to attract “EU” and international market. He also added, it will be decided in next meeting weather IPO should be signatory of “UPOV” (Union of Protection of Plant Varieties) or we need not it. Chairman who is hot enthusiast for improvement of organization said that there is zero tolerance to corruption and no place of shirker here.
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