Section 102 of the Patents Act, 1970
Acquisition of inventions and patents by the Central Government
Allows the Central Government to acquire an invention or patent outright for a public purpose by Gazette notification, on payment of compensation.
Official legal text
The verbatim statutory text of this provision is reproduced from the official source and checked by our legal reviewer before it is published here. Until that check is complete for this page, read the exact wording directly from the official source linked below — it is the only version that governs.
Nothing here replaces the statute. The official wording of the provision, together with any Gazette notification that applies to it, governs. This page only explains that material in ordinary language.
What this section says, in plain language
Section 102 is the strongest power in this Chapter. Section 100 allows the Government to use an invention while ownership stays where it is. Section 102 goes further and lets the Central Government take ownership. If the Government is satisfied that it is necessary that an invention, or a patent already granted, should be acquired for a public purpose, it may say so by notification in the Official Gazette. From that point the invention or patent, and all rights in it, stand transferred to and vested in the Central Government.
The power reaches pending applications as well as granted patents. That is deliberate. A sensitive technology may be identified long before the Controller grants a patent, and it would be pointless if the State had to wait several years for grant before it could act. The notification is the operative step, and the Gazette gives it a public date that everyone can verify.
Acquisition is not confiscation. The Central Government must pay compensation to the person from whom the rights are taken and to any other person who had an interest in them, such as a registered licensee or a mortgagee. The amount is what the parties agree with the Central Government. If there is no agreement, the High Court determines it on a reference under Section 103. In deciding, the court looks at practical matters, including the expenditure the inventor or applicant actually incurred in making and developing the invention and the usefulness of what has been created.
Because acquisition changes the owner, everything that follows changes too. Renewal decisions, licensing, enforcement and revocation defence all pass to the Central Government. A licensee whose licence came from the old owner should look closely at its position and press its own compensation claim rather than assume the licence will simply continue.
In practice Section 102 is used very rarely. Its real function is deterrent and reserve: it exists for situations of genuine national need, typically involving defence, atomic energy, national security or a serious public health requirement, where mere use of the invention would not be enough and the State needs to control the technology itself. Section 66, which lets the Government revoke a patent that is mischievous to the State or generally prejudicial to the public, is a different tool that destroys the right rather than transferring it.
Why this section matters
Patentees and applicants working in defence, security, atomic energy, strategic materials and critical public health technologies, and anyone holding a registered interest in such a patent.
At any stage, from a pending application through to a granted patent in force.
A power in the Central Government to vest the invention or patent in itself by Gazette notification, and a corresponding right to compensation in the former owner and other interested persons.
An owner who does not act on the notification may lose the chance to negotiate compensation and to place proof of development expenditure before the High Court, and an unregistered licensee may find it hard to establish an interest at all.
How it works in practice
A sensor patent acquired for a public purpose
Kestrel Robotics Pvt Ltd, a Bengaluru company, obtains an Indian patent on a compact sensor that detects trace chemicals in air at very low concentrations. The technology draws attention for its use in hazardous-site monitoring. The Central Government concludes that the technology must be under State control and issues a notification in the Official Gazette acquiring the patent for a public purpose. On the date of the notification the patent vests in the Central Government, and Kestrel is no longer the patentee. Kestrel had earlier granted a registered licence to Deccan Instruments Ltd for industrial safety products. Both companies are entitled to press claims for compensation: Kestrel as the former patentee, Deccan as a person interested in the patent. Kestrel places before the Government its audited development spend, prototype costs and the four years of engineering effort behind the sensor. The Government offers a figure Kestrel considers low. Because there is no agreement, the question of the amount goes to the High Court under Section 103, where the expenditure incurred and the usefulness of the invention are weighed.
Simplified illustration only. Actual legal outcomes depend on the facts.
Key points to remember
- Acquisition is by notification in the Official Gazette, and it transfers ownership to the Central Government.
- Both granted patents and pending applications can be acquired.
- Compensation is payable to the former owner and to other persons interested in the invention.
- If there is no agreement on the amount, the High Court decides on a reference under Section 103.
- The court weighs matters such as development expenditure and the usefulness of the invention.
- This power differs from Section 66, which revokes a patent rather than transferring it.
Common mistakes and misunderstandings
- Confusing acquisition with government use. Section 100 leaves you the owner; Section 102 does not.
- Assuming compensation is limited to a formula. There is no fixed rate, and evidence of what was actually spent on developing the invention carries real weight.
- Thinking only the registered patentee can claim. Licensees, mortgagees and others with an interest may also claim compensation.
- Waiting to see what happens after the Gazette notification instead of assembling costing records and a valuation immediately.
Connected provisions
- ActSection 100Power of Central Government to use inventions for purposes of Government
- ActSection 103Reference to High Court of disputes as to use for purposes of Government
- ActSection 99Meaning of use of invention for purposes of Government
- ActSection 66Revocation of patent in public interest
- ActSection 69Registration of assignments, transmissions, etc.
A section tells you what the law is. A rule tells you how the Patent Office runs it from day to day. The two are kept apart here so that a reader can quote the section accurately and then look up the current rule for the practical steps.
Forms, deadlines and fees
Any official fee connected with this provision is fixed by the First Schedule to the Patents Rules, not by the provision itself. The amount depends on who the applicant is and on whether the filing is made online or on paper, so no figures are reproduced here. How Indian patent fees work.
Related judgments
No judgment summaries appear here yet. Our process requires a legal review of each case note before publication, covering the citation, the court and the point actually decided. Until a note for this provision has passed that check, the section stays empty rather than carrying unverified material. How case notes are prepared.
Questions people ask about Section 102
Can the Government take my patent away from me completely?
Under Section 102 it can, but only where it is satisfied that acquisition is necessary for a public purpose, and only by a notification published in the Official Gazette. From the date of that notification the invention or patent vests in the Central Government. You do not lose the value: compensation is payable to you and to anyone else with an interest in the patent. If the amount cannot be settled by agreement, the High Court fixes it under Section 103. In practice this power is used very rarely.
How is the compensation for an acquired patent calculated?
There is no fixed rate in the Act. The first route is agreement between the interested persons and the Central Government. If that fails, the High Court determines the amount. The court looks at practical indicators, including the expenditure the applicant or patentee incurred in making and developing the invention and how useful the invention is. So keep clean records of research spend, prototype costs, testing bills and staff time, because that evidence directly supports the figure you ask for.
What happens to licences already granted when a patent is acquired?
Ownership moves to the Central Government, so the commercial arrangements a licensee relied on are put in doubt. A licensee is treated as a person interested in the invention and can advance its own claim for compensation rather than depending on the former patentee to protect it. If you hold a licence in a sensitive field, register your interest under Section 69 so that your position is on the record, and raise your claim promptly after the Gazette notification appears.
Facing acquisition of your patent by the Government?
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