Rush begins to become patent agents

There has been a sharp increase in the number of graduates who want to qualify as patent agents -- the intermediates between patent applicants and the patent office.

Over 2,000 persons will appear for the national level examination conducted by the patent office that qualifies graduates to work as patent agents later this month. This is a five-fold increase over the number of applications that had reached the patent office last year.

The numbers have shot up as more and more companies want patent protection for their innovations, according to

P H Kurian, the controller general of patents, designs and trademarks. "We have only 600 to 700 practising patent agents today, and most of them are in the metros. Now we have 2,000 applications from across the country," he said.

The examination will be conducted under the aegis of the newly-set up Patent Agent Examination Board, a four-member committee of independent experts and the controller general of patents. The centres for the examination are Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai.

The higher base of patent agents is expected to increase patent filings as well as patent quality, said Kurian. These agents would also help increase filings from innovation hubs.