The Government of India and the European Patent Office (EPO) have signed an agreement which enables the EPO to access the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL). The agreement gives EPO examiners online access to information related to Indian traditional knowledge in all phases of the European patent grant procedure as governed by the European Patent Convention.
The main purpose of TKDL is to make Indian traditional knowledge prior art accessible to patent offices, translating Indian traditional knowledge from existing prior art, traditional knowledge formulations or know-how, available in Hindi, Sanskrit, Arabic, Persian, Urdu and other languages, into five international languages (English, French, German, Spanish and Japanese). The aim is to prevent commercial appropriation of lndian traditional knowledge already available in the public domain.
source: EPO press release
