Nirmal Singh

Patenting Trends among BRICS and Effect on GDP

Patenting trends of a country indicates its technological competitiveness. The present study has been conducted with the objective to analyse the patenting trends amongst BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) characterized by rapidly growing economies and increasing international influence. Number of patent applications filed, patents earned and patent-population ratio of BRICS are among the factors assessed. An effort has been made to find correlation of patenting activities of BRICS on their Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The data related to patents and GDP of BRICS was downloaded from WIPOs website and analysed using MS-Excel and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). A robust rise was noticed in number of patents earned and the GDP of China. India also showed a very good progress in the assessed factors. A direct relationship was observed between number of patents granted and GDP of BRICS on a whole. The study led to the conclusion that increase in patenting activities amongst BRICS play a pivotal role in the overall growth and development of these nations.

Utilization of Consortium for e-Resources in Agriculture (CeRA) by Faculty of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU)

Consortium for e-Resources in Agriculture (CeRA) provides access to about 2,900 scholarly journals including almost 300 journals in veterinary science and related fields such as dairy science and technology, biotechnology, and fisheries. This article presents the results of a study assessing the utilization of CeRA by faculty of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU), Ludhiana (Punjab), India. Data was collected via questionnaire with a response rate of 95%. Among the factors assessed are user awareness of CeRA, purpose of use, sources of information about consortium, search strategies used to access articles, users’ opinion about usefulness of consortium, and problems faced by them in using CeRA. It concludes with the need for adopting suitable measures for promoting utilization of CeRA.