Research

Justice delayed is often said as justice denied. As reported by the Economic Times over 4.70 crore cases are pending in various courts of our country, of which 87.4% are pending in subordinate courts, 12.4% in High Courts, while nearly 1,82,000 cases have been pending for over 30 years, reports The Hindu. Alternative dispute resolution (popularly known as ADR) mechanism provides scientifically developed techniques to Indian judiciary which helps in reducing the burden on the courts. ADR provides various modes of settlement including, arbitration, conciliation, mediation, negotiation and Lok Adalat. I have published two books on arbitration law in India. Working papers in this theme are;

IPR and competition law are two favourite subjects since my law school days. Though in law schools these subjects are taught individually, both these subjects are interconnected in many aspects. I have six research papers, two books and three book chapters published in this area, including the one on introducing the patent law to the readers and the other was an in-depth commentary on the Indian competition law. Working papers in this theme are as follows;

Contract drafting is the step-by-step process which involves in narrating the terms and conditions that the parties to said contract mutually agreed to comply with. It helps them to facilitate innovation, creativity, and business expansion. When contracts are drafted well, companies can enjoy a number of benefits, from avoiding a breach of contract and litigation to improved business relationships. But drafting a contract is easier said than done. A poorly drafted contract creates ambiguity, confusion, and misunderstandings that can derail business and other deals. I have published an article/column on this theme and currently working on following papers;

Generally speaking, traditional knowledge is the knowledge systems embedded in the cultural traditions of regional, indigenous, or local communities. Therefore, it is also called as indigenous knowledge or local knowledge. It is considered as a part of the collective ownership of the community and is transmitted across generations through traditional ways. We can find the traditional knowledge in wide variety of context such as; agricultural, biodiversity – related knowledge, ecological, medicinal knowledge, scientific, and technical knowledge.

Traditional knowledge has been passed for years orally from generations to generations. The inventions based on the traditional knowledge can be protected either as a patent, trademark or a geographical indication. However, such traditional or indigenous knowledge, which was the basis for such invention, are not generally protected under the conventional forms of intellectual property rights.

Significance of traditional knowledge has been developed drastically in the recent years in view of its increasing values in the field of biotechnology and herbal. It is difficult for assessing the value of the products derived through the research carried out based on the indigenous knowledge. Hence, in consideration of the growing significance of the traditional knowledge in the economy as well as health sector, protection of the indigenous knowledge is a necessity and, a part of the value created by protecting the local knowledge shall be transferred back to the actual authors (indigenous people) of such knowledge.

Submitted a detailed proposal to Government of India along with possible options to protect the traditional knowledge in India.

The Indian education system is conducive to the holistic development of an individual. At the same time, it is aimed at harmoniously integrating and nurturing family, society, nation and the universe. However, the existing system is nothing but the continuation of the system introduced by Macaulay, resulting only in promoting political and intellectual slavery. Independent India failed to break this frame work and such failure affected the entire infrastructure as education is the cornerstone of nation building. However, in 2020 Government of India introduced the National Education Policy recognising the uniqueness of Indian philosophy and incorporating Indian values to its possible extent in the education system, so that it will nurture and sustain constructive thinking and research skills of our future generations. Five columns/articles of mine in this theme got published in national/regional dailies. Currently working on a manuscript (book) on Indian education system.

Rapid urban growth and rising mobility demand in emerging cities in emerging economies call for a consistent and comprehensive urban mobility policy framework. Implementing sustainable urban mobility policies in these cities is complicated by fragmented governance structures, conflicting policy priorities and lack of effective financing mechanisms. In a country like India, it is the need of the hour to revisit our policies on urban planning, mobility and public transportation systems and its effective implementation. I presented a paper titled the legal and governance challenges to urban mobility and transport systems in India, at the National Seminar on Smart laws for smart cities: agenda for reform, consolidation and codification held at Bangalore in 2018. I had an opportunity to be a part of the KMTA Cell constituted to establish the Kochi Metropolitan Transport Authority under the Kerala Metropolitan Transport Authority Act, 2019 and drafted the Regulations for the same.