IPR South ensuring public health & safety by controlling trade of counterfeit products

IPR South ensuring public health & safety by controlling trade of counterfeit products:

Under the SRO 768(0/2014 dated 18.08.2014, the Directorate General of Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement is mandated to stop the trade of counterfeit products and enforce all Intellectual Property Rights in line with the WIPO program and other relating laws for the imports and exports made in Pakistan.

Pakistan is signatory to many international conventions governing the aspect of Intellectual Property Rights protection in International Trade, The Directorate of IPR.E South aims towards ensuring that Pakistan abides by its international legal obligations and that the trade transactions made in the South region strictly comply with the Intellectual Property Laws.

It strives to facilitate smooth flow of the legitimate trade and to bolster recovery, renewal and resilience for a sustainable supply chain.

Directorate of IPRE South has a robust targeting mechanism in which after receipt of an enforcement application, or a case referred from any Clearance Collectorate, the credentials of the right holders are verified through the Recordation Data Base of Intellectual Property Organization (IPO), Pakistan.

Once the available database verifies the claim of a right holder, the consignment of alleged infringing goods are detained and dealt with according to law. In this regard, the Directorate of IPRE Karachi has also maintained a local data base of all the consignments intercepted, the seizures and forfeitures made thereafter and litigations pending against these seizures.

Besides, Team of IPR South led by Director Nayema Batool and comprising Additional Director Dr Sadia, Deputy Collector Sanam Qureshi, Assistant Collector Bakht Bariyar, has also taken a lead role in maintaining a recordation database of various products, trademarks, copyrights etc. of different right holders, having frequent imports, so that swift action can be taken in case of IPR violation.

During the year 2020-21, multiple cases carrying miscellaneous counterfeit goods-worth a market value of more than Rs.700 million, have been detected by Directorate of IPR Enforcement, and a record number of seizures and forfeitures made.

The first and foremost priority being consumer health and safety, most of these seizures/forfeitures are of counterfeit consumer items including empty bottle/tube/aerosol cans to be used for sale of counterfeit cosmetics, perfumes, tooth-paste, toiletries, insecticides and all products meant for infants.

Historic cases of counterfeit Swiss and Japanese watches, containers full of counterfeit mobile batteries, and adhesive stickers of international brands to fool the common man into buying very cheap quality mobile and computer accessories, chargers, hand free, wifi-routers, power banks mistaking them as branded products of Apple, Xiaomi and Samsung.

Tons, of counterfeit packing material of all renowned brands like Adidas, Channel, YSL, Dior etc. as well as their products.

The next concern is the Automobile parts, where bringing fake/infringed copies again means playing with lives of passengers and driver; such as the counterfeit Auto Air bag cover, which have caused hundreds of fatal car accidents in Pakistan.

Most interesting is the Directorate’s successful attempts in foiling/un-earthing black-mailers who ruin the business of genuine exporters and ruin Pakistan’s image abroad, The rice association is full of appreciation for Directorate of IPRE South for foiling the attempt of rice blackmailers.

In a short time, Directorate General of IPRE and Directorate of IPRE South has earned the respect of numerous international brands and IPRE received letter of appreciation and shields from several brands including GSK, Proctor and Gamble, Unilever, Zong, LG, Toyota, Samsung, M/s B.P.S and OSIRIS etc.

Giving relevant training and awareness about counterfeit goods to the customs officers and other stakeholders is always a priority for this Directorate. For this purpose, multiple training and awareness seminars were held.

It includes Awareness Seminars arranged for MCC Appraisement Quetta, Directorate of Intelligence and Investigation Quetta and various Directorates in Karachi.

Similarly, presentations, awareness seminars and visit to the counterfeit gallery were arranged for various batches of probationers during their STP.

In addition, specific seminars for the chambers of commerce from all over Pakistan via zoom and special sessions for FPCCI Karachi, and their women entrepreneurs; and even with CEOs of all Multi-National Brands through overseas Chamber of Commerce Karachi were arranged by this Directorate.

During the current year, the young probationary officers of 47th and 48th CTP were also trained by the Directorate in enforcement of IPR laws.

In a similar collaboration between the Overseas Chamber Commerce and IPRE South in February 2021, another awareness seminar was conducted for controlling the trade of counterfeit pharmaceutical products, which was attended by the representatives of companies like Novartis, Abbott, Pfizer, and Bayer Wyeth Pakistan.

The most significant was the eight-month long Zoom Awareness Seminar of 85 Customs Officers of Grade 17 and above with pharmaceutical industry of Pakistan FDA, USPTO etc.

External outreach interactive sessions were also arranged over the year in collaboration with at least 150 international brands like Siemens, Samsung, Unilever, P&G, Toyota, etc.

Custom Recordals of 200 plus brands maintained and the number is increasing on daily basis.

The Directorate of IPRE south is striving to making Pakistan a forerunner in abiding by the international Intellectual Property obligations and for making it a favorite trading hub for international brands.

The directorate is ensuring that the staff of Pakistan Customs and all other stakeholders are well aware of their responsibilities regarding IPR along with ensuring the health and safety of the citizens by controlling the trade of counterfeit products.