The Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM), a professional body under the aegis of the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India, is organizing a National Conference on Counterfeiting and Role of Enforcement Agencies on 13^th-14^th March, 2018 in New Delhi, in collaboration with European Union (EU). Minister of Commerce and Industry, Shri Suresh Prabhu will inaugurate this two-day conference in the presence of DIPP Secretary Shri Ramesh Abhishek.

Counterfeiting has grown considerably to a point where it has become a widespread phenomenon with a global impact. Counterfeiting, other than causing an erosion on the brand value, reputation and goodwill of the manufacturers and owners of IP, leads to social and economic consequences resulting in huge economic losses in terms of lost taxes and revenues. It leads to diversion of funds earned therefrom to other illegal activities; counterfeit products put a threat to consumers' health and safety as well.

Enforcement agencies like police, customs, as also the prosecution wing, have a major role to play in effective enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in the country. Creating awareness about IPRs and the menace of counterfeiting amongst officials of these agencies will strengthen the enforcement regime, as also assist them in handling cases relating to counterfeit products in their day to day activities.

The conference intends to bring together national and international experts on the same platform to have a dialogue and exchange best practices for the benefit of enforcement agencies, attorneys and industry representatives and provide fresh ideas for further strengthening the IPR protection ecosystem.

It will also act as a platform for the officials to share their experiences and better inter-agency coordination with respect to tackling the menace of counterfeiting. Besides people from enforcement agencies, many IP professionals, lawyers, e-commerce stakeholders and people from industry associations are also participating in the conference.

The government has taken several initiatives to spread awareness among enforcement agencies about the importance of their role in IPR enforcement. Last year, the Ministry had also launched a toolkit for Police officials across the country to help them deal with IP crimes, specifically Trade Marks counterfeiting and Copyrights piracy. A three-day national workshop on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) was also held in August 2017. Additionally, multiple training sessions have also been conducted for police officials from across the country.

Intellectual Property Rights enforcement: conference advances enforcement capacity, inter-agency coordination and training to tackle counterfeiting. A CIPAM-led national conference, with EU collaboration, focuses on counterfeiting and the role of enforcement agencies in protecting Intellectual Property Rights, stressing that counterfeiting causes economic loss, health risks and funds illegal activity. The conference aims to strengthen police, customs and prosecution capacity through exchange of best practices, inter-agency coordination and knowledge sharing, building on government measures such as a police toolkit for IP crimes, a national enforcement workshop and multiple training sessions.