The National Biodiversity Authority has released a new set of rules to manage sharing of benefits generated through the use of biological resources. The Biological Diversity (Access to biological Resources and Knowledge Associated thereto and Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits) Regulation 2025 was approved by the Central government and …
A unique aquaculture-agriculture farming system has been developed by farmers at the Fulpur Thana in Mymensingh district of Bangladesh. They have developed this technique through their age-old practices, experiences and hands-on training received from local non-governmental organisations and the department of fisheries. Farmers at Fulpur have developed rice-fish farming system, …
Mashelkar: Traditional patent systems dealt with industrial products. There has now been a sudden shift from inanimate objects to animate ones like humans and plants. The issue has assumed importance all of a sudden because multinational pharmaceutical companies began picking up leads and developing new products without giving any credit …
lapodia is a small village of some 189 families in the Dudu block of Jaipur district in Rajasthan. Located in a semi-arid area, the residents of Lapodia are primarily agro-pastoralists, and their livestock subsists on the pastures in the neighbouring areas. In the past four-five years, the people of this …
Sosobala Mbatha, South Africa's most famous traditional healer, will share his knowledge of Zulu indigenous medicine with his counterparts in the us . Mbatha has been invited to New York by American Traditional Healers for a series of meetings during which they hope to pool information. "By collaborating with other …
thirty-one years ago, Science magazine published the famous article on the tragedy of the commons by Garrett Hardin. The commons were defined as an expanse of land under collective or open use. Hardin's article argued that the commons necessarily collapse because of the inherent selfishness of people over shared resources. …
The Shaman tribe of the Amazon rainforest have sought to revoke a patent granted to businessperson from the us on their most sacred plant, a vine called ayauasca , which has medicinal and ceremonial qualities. The tribe uses ayuhuasca to make a potent hallucinogenic brew for religious rituals. "The vine …
the innovative attempt to give money in return for the traditional knowledge of the Kani tribals of the Western Ghats as Intellectual Property is now complete. Royalty from the sale of
Despite Viagara hitting the stores in Hong Kong, the sale of Chinese medicines has not been affected. The Hong Kong health authorities approved the sale of Viagara in February 1999 and the manufacturer Pfizer rushed it to the local pharmaceuticals. Pharmacist Pat Lee said, "On an average, only three or …
I t was too good to last. The honeymoon between the us -based Shaman Pharmaceuticals and 30 ethnic communities across Latin America, Africa and Southeast Asia seems to be over. In February 1998, Provir, a promising anti-diarrhoeal drug based on ethnic medicinal knowledge, which Shaman was trying to develop for …
AN exhibition of photographs by Rajnikant Yadav, entitled "Images of Narmada', was held from December 9 to 15 at the Indian International Centre, New Delhi. It documented the culture of various tribes living on the banks of the Narmada, including Bhils, Bhilalas, Baigas and Gonds. That Yadav has travelled extensively …
about three decades ago, Nuka Raja, a farmer of Bhimavaram village in east Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, used to sow only traditional crops. The crop yield was low, but sufficient. In the 1980s, a tobacco company persuaded him to switch to tobacco, promising fertilisers, pesticides and a loan. Many …
The miracle-makers Scientists are only now finding out the Kanis' knowledge of herbal remedies.The most outstanding find so far is arogyapacha. SMELL of burning bamboo. The short and wiry figure of Ayyappan Kani. The elderly man is busy mixing herbs with a strange extraction from a piece of burnt bamboo. …
In 1995, the government's Integrated Tribal Development Project in Nedumangad initiated a scheme in collaboration with TBGRI to help the Kanis grow medicinal plants in their settlements. Under the project, 50 select families received Rs 1,000 each. Reportedly, 20.25 hectares were under cultivation. "Many people successfully cultivated arogyapacha" notes Rajasekharan. …
The benefit sharing scheme for arogyapacha saw hurdles right from the start. On July 22, 1995, the then chief minister of Kerala, A K Antony, was to sign a memorandum of understanding with Arya Vaidya Pharmacy (AVP), marking the technology transfer from the Tropical Botanical Garden and Research Institute (TBGRI). …
"We are now documenting the tribal medical knowledge and details of the medicinal plants that the tribals use," says Vishwanathan Nair, director, KIRTADS. A PhD in tribal medicine, Nair says he refused to publish his thesis as he first wanted to know what the tribals have got. He also fears …
In November 1995, TBGRI sold the formula to Arya Vaidya Pharmacy (AVP) of Coimbatore for a licence fee of Rs 10 lakh to produce the drug for seven years. The licence fee and the 2 per cent royalty on the profits from the formulation was to be shared equally by …
IT COULD well be one of the most exhaustive scientific pursuits undertaken in post-independence India. The All India Coordinated Research Project on Ethnobiology (AICRPE) has unearthed a large spectrum of uses that tribal popuations of the country make of plants and animals. Home to some of the world's most diverse …
THE traditional Indian systems of medicine such as Auyrveda, Unani and Siddha, are facing a threat from an unlikely quarter - the World Trade Organisation's (WTO'S) rules on Intellectual Property Rights (IPRS). With the US and various other multinational companies reportedly on the rampage to acquire patent rights on medicinal …
NAGAMMA, 55, is a vaidyar (traditional doctor), who is an expert in curing snakebites. She lives in Keerapakkam village, Chengalpet district, Tamil Nadu. One morning, Chinappa, a snake catcher, was bitten by a large cobra. He was taken to several doctors, but no one could cure him. He was gasping …
Researchers at the Magan Sangrahalaya in Wardha, Maharashtra, have designed an efficient charkha (spinning wheel). This three-spindle spinning machine is simple, light and reasonably priced. A team led by expert Narayanarao Khallarkar is working further to improve the technique and management of decentralised spinning and weaving system. The traditional charkha …
