Budget 2023: Allocation for IPR ecosystem up by 15% to Rs 329 crore

Allocation for intellectual property ecosystem, including the copyright office and Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, has been increased by about 15 per cent to Rs 328.981 crore

Allocation in the Budget for the intellectual property ecosystem, including the copyright office and Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, has been increased by about 15 per cent to Rs 328.981 crore.

In the revised estimate (2022-23), the allocations stood at Rs 285.41 crore.

The budgetary allocation for the copyright office and Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks has been hiked to Rs 281.60 crore as against Rs 232.65 crore in the revised estimate, according to the Budget documents.

Similarly, enhanced funds have been allocated to strengthen the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB), Intellectual Policy Rights (IPR) policy management, and infrastructure development in Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks.

The office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks is responsible for the administration of laws relating to IPRs -- Patents Act, 1970; the Designs Act, 2000; the Trade Marks Act, 1999; Geographical Indications Act, 1999; Copyright Act, 1957; and Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout Design Act, 2000.

Overall, the allocation for the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) rose by about 22 per cent to Rs 8,200.63 crore as against Rs 6,725.01 crore in the revised estimates.

For national industrial corridors, the allocated fund stood at Rs 2,000 crore as against Rs 1,500 crore in 2022-23.

The government has allocated Rs 160 crore for the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme in the Budget 2023-24, which is higher than the Revised Estimate of Rs 140 crore.

The budgetary allocations for the Fund of Funds for Startups stood at Rs 1,470 crore.

The government has set up the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) with a corpus of Rs 10,000 crore. The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is the operating agency for the FFS.

In April 2021, the government rolled out the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), which aims to provide financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market-entry, and commercialisation.

The Footwear, Leather and Accessories Development Programme (FLADP) has received Rs 250 crore for 2023-24.

On the other hand, the commerce department witnessed cut in allocations to Rs 5,254.58 crore. It was Rs 6,456 crore in the revised estimates of 2022-23.

The total allocations for markets access initiative and interest equalisation scheme have been increased to Rs 200 crore and Rs 2,932 crore for 2023-24.