India grants 13,045 patents in 2017-18

India has granted as many as 13,045 patents in 2017-18, compared to 9,847 in the previous fiscal, Parliament was informed today.

The number of patents granted in 2015-16 was 6,326.

Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha that the government has taken several steps to simplify the procedure for processing of patent applications and make it user-friendly.

"To address the issue of lack of technical manpower for examination and disposal of patent applications, available manpower has been augmented through creation of new posts. Recruitment has been completed for 459 posts of Examiners of Patents and Designs," he said.

He added that 84 new posts of examiners and 95 posts of controllers have been sanctioned.

Replying to a separate question, the minister said that under the 'Make in India' initiative, launched in 2014, the ministry is now focusing on 27 sectors from 25 earlier.

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) is coordinating action plans for 15 manufacturing sectors while the Department of Commerce is coordinating 12 service segments.

These sectors include aerospace and defence; shipping, IT, legal services and financial services.