Patent Act amended by ordinance
History: Though patent rights did exist in some form since times immemorial, the first codified enactment came in India by the Indian Patents and Designs Act, 1911.
After Independence, the need for a comprehensive law was realised. The Government of India appointed a Patents Enquiry Committee (Bakshi Tekchand Committee) to review the working of patents law of India, in 1948. And the Patents Bill was introduced in the Parliament in 1953. The Bill lapsed due to the dissolution of the First Lok Sabha.
In 1957, the Government appointed Justice Rajagopala Iyengar to examine afresh and review the Patents law in India and advise accordingly. The Committee submitted its report in 1959 and the Patents Bill was introduced in 1965 based mainly on the recommendations of the Committee. This Bill also lapsed but was finally passed in 1970, 17 years after the first bill was introduced. This Act, known as the Patents Act, 1970, is considered to be one of the most important pieces of legislation to have been enacted in this country.