The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), which oversees patent and other intellectual property laws across the 150 member countries, is setting up 300 information centres to disseminate information and advise people on IPR issues. These centres will be connected to each other and to the national patent offices of the member countries. This effort will depend heavily on hardware and software to enable seamless flow of information across the centres.

For this, WIPO is planning to launch a restricted tender worth $ 25 million (about Rs 100 crore) later in the year. While traditionally, WIPO's tenders have been open only to US and European countries, this time the Government convinced WIPO to invite India as one of the bidders. WIPO hasalready agreed to put an Indian in the team which will prepare the tender document.

``Participation in this project will give domestic IT companies a firm foothold into markets they have not yet stepped into,'' say sources close to the project. Once India gets a slice of this business (and the slice will be quite thick, say the sources), the domestic IT industry will get instant access to 150 member countries of WIPO. This network will take the Indian IT industry into countries in regions as diverse as Latin America and Africa -- regions where it would never have gone on its own. All these countries are also planning to upgrade their patent offices. And the average budget for this upgradation is $ 10 million (India's budget for upgrading its patent office is about $ 18 million). This translates to over a $-1 billion market in over 100 countries. They would naturally opt for the least cost but high quality option offered by India IT industry. Especially since India industry's work would be endorsed byWIPO.

Another indirect benefit will be that India industry's work will be showcased for private client in these countries as well. Though putting a figure on the potential private sector business would be premature.

Till now WIPO's IT projects have been given mostly to US and European countries through tender open to companies only from that region. But this year the Government (which is represented by the Industry Ministry) asked the director general of WIPO, Kamil Idris, to look at India as a possible supplier of infotech for the project. Idris agreed to consider India and sent a team of four to evaluate the capability. The team visited New Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad and met leading IT companies like NIIT, Infosys and industry body Nasscom. The team also met Andhra Chief Minister Chandra Babu Naidu.

The team went back convinced that India is very well placed to deliver project. The initial project will cover five specific areas. IT consultancy; software development; communication and networking;training; and development of solutions. Indian companies have expertise in all these fields.

WIPO has set up a Standing Committee of Information Technology to implement this project and asked countries to suggest candidates to head. India submitted the name of Dr R A Mashelkar, the director general of CSIR, for the same. All the member countries voted and elected Mashelkar as the head. This is considered to be significant because it happened in June this year, weeks after the Pokharan tests when the anti-India feeling was at the peak in the international community. The sources say this reflects the recognition of India's strength in information technology sector.

Soon this strength would take the industry into far corners of the earth.