Irked also by GIPC rating on Intellectual Property Rights.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Although India has been downgraded by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) from Category I to Category II, the country’s Civil Aviation Ministry has released figures that highlight the fact that India has actually had a stronger aviation record than the US over the four-year period between 2009 and 2012.
In the year 2012, there were absolutely no accidents on scheduled commercial aircraft flights in India, even though there were 24 in the US. The previous year, 2011, again saw no such accidents occurred in India while 28 took place in the US. In 2010, there was one accident that took place on a scheduled commercial aircraft in India, despite 26 having taken place in the US; similarly, 2009 saw one occurrence in India and 26 in the US.
These numbers come with a “rate per million” percentage, to help level the field for comparison between big and small countries that may not have an equal number of flights going through them. In 2012 and 2011, India’s was 0.0%, but the US had a rate of 3.1% in 2011. In 2010, India’s rate was just 1.6% while the US was at 2.8%, and in 2009, India had 1 rate per million of 1.7% while the US was at 2.7%.
The inconsistency in downgrading the country’s aviation seems to be pervading Indian industry of late, with both the pharmaceutical and intellectual property sectors becoming victims of US criticism. Many within India are criticizing the US grading system and its motivations for going after India, saying there may be malevolent intentions behind these actions.
The US Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) has rated India 25th out of 25 countries in terms of its laws and handing intellectual property rights. The GIPC criticizes India for protecting weak patents when it shouldn’t, and for not being protective of copyright laws in general. The US, UK, and France topped the rankings, which was conducted by pharmaceutical consultancy firm Pugatch Consilium.
Pharmaceutical companies are also being advised to steer clear of India, and the FDA is cracking down on all such products that are sold in the US but originate in India. The Ranbaxy plant in Toansa which was closed by the FDA last week is just the most recent in a long line of such closings, lending credence to the growing sentiment that the US may be coming after India intentionally.
The Department of State has said that such actions, specifically the FAA downgrade, is not meant as a retaliatory measure for the Devyani Khobragade incident, which has come back into the fray now that the State Department ruled her former diplomatic immunity can no longer protect her from prosecution.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com