An earlier study presented an analysis of leather patents in India, covering the period 1912-1972. This article covers the subsequent period, following implementation of the Indian Patents Act, 1970. It compares and contrasts the two periods, and analyses the later period by country of origin of the patentees, by subject matter categories within the leather industry, and by the type of patentee. While confirming, for this technology, the long-established patterns in Indian patents in general of relatively low levels of patenting, dominance by foreign patentees and the strong corporate nature of patentees, it was found that, despite the expectation that this industry would still have a strong element of traditional technology and therefore a low patenting level and low involvement of Indian patentees, the level of patenting, the proportion of patentees of Indian origin (38%), and the involvement of research organisations (35%) are all above average. This applies both overall for the 132 leather patents analysed and, in some cases more pronouncedly, within most of the subject matter categories.
