The right pill

BS OPINION

 These range from maintenance of the status quo to renegotiation of the TRIPs agreement, on the basis of a wish-list of sundry provisions for protecting domestic industry.

 Yet another proposal is that, if nothing can be done, then replace the product patents system with something called BS - 91, which essentially means Indian companies can copy any drug they want and pay 2 per cent to 4 per cent royalty to the originator. The system existed in Canada till the country joined the North American free trade area in 1992.

 BS-91 backers say that it will ensure speedier entry of life-saving drugs into India at affordable prices. Yet another argument is that, if generics from India are cheaper in world markets, it is partly because their development cost is amortised over a huge domestic market.

 Once you have product patents, this advantage will be gone. There will be no guarantee that the development cost incurred by an Indian company will be recovered.

 While these arguments may make good debating points in a swadeshi forum, India