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It is best to stop the fake and spurious goods at the territorial borders itself. With large open borders, ever increasing market demand and its proximity to some of the prominent countries engaged in manufacturing counterfeit goods, India has been highly susceptible and vulnerable to the counterfeit trade through its borders. With the advent of IPR (Imported Good) Enforcement Rules 2007, the Indian Customs have been vested with the wide powers to interdict and suspend a consignment containing suspected counterfeit goods. During its nascent stage and five years henceforth, there has been tremendous cooperation from and stupendous work done by the Indian Customs Department in preventing the entry of spurious goods in India. However, as the quality of IPR infringing goods has substantially improved and more and more goods of complex nature are involved, the investigative and enforcement agencies have found it increasingly difficult to distinguish genuine products from the infringing ones, thereby calling for an input from the industry and a partnership between the IPR right-holders and enforcers.

In most countries that accord protection to Intellectual Property Rights, the law enforcement authorities other than Customs are also responsible for controlling and containing IPR infringing goods within their territories, for example at open markets or production sites. In addition to border control mechanism, it is necessary to act at the source of the problem by stopping the import/export of IPR infringing goods and, where possible, by shutting down the production in order that the menace is nipped in the bud.

However, given the unique Indian topography, Customs Administration is the key controlling body at the external frontiers of India. Co-operation with other enforcement authorities and the right holders also needs to be improved to tackle the problem of IPR infringements. Hence, this combined initiative by United IPR, the European Communities Trade Marks Association (ECTA – to represent industry’s larger interest), along-with some of the prominent international brands vis-à-vis, COTY, L’OREAL, LACOSTE, RAYBAN, OAKLEY, CALVIN KLEIN, LVMH, CHRISTIAN DIOR, HUBLOT, TAG HEUER, ZENITH, POLO RALPH LAUREN & WD-40.

The Customs Training Road-Show was successfully organized and held on the following dates and venues:

1. At the New Customs House (Delhi Air Cargo), New Delhi on 21st January 2013 – This workshop was attended by more than 40 Custom officers and was presided by the Hon’ble Chief Commissioner of Customs, Ms. M. Michael.

2. At the Inland Container Depot, Tughlakabad (Land Freight Station), New Delhi, on 22nd January 2013 – This workshop was attended by more than 75 Custom officers and was presided by the Hon’ble Commissioner of Customs (Import) Shri M.S. Arora, the Additional Commissioner of Customs (Import) Shri R.K. Meena and the Additional Commissioner of Customs (Import) Shri Manish Goyal.

3. At the Customs House, (Sea Port) Chennai, on 24th January 2013 – This workshop was attended by around 100 Custom officers, including officers from the Sea Port as well as Chennai Air Cargo and was felicitated under the presence of Hon’ble Commissioner of Customs (Import), Shri C. Rajenderan, the Additional Commissioner of Customs (Import), Shri P. Jaideep, the Additional Commissioner of Customs Shri Suresh Kumar Babu, the Deputy Commissioner of Customs Mr. L. Stephens, the Deputy Commissioner of Customs (SIIB) Shri M. Murlikrishna and the Assistant Commissioner of Customs (Docks) Ms. Vamshadhara.

The above report has been published under the ECTA News Flash on 31st January 2013 and the same can be viewed on the following link:-

www.ecta.org/publications/ecta-flash/article/02-13#flash_zone4