By Fiza Masoodi

Afiya Khan had spent months designing a unique Pashmina pattern for her small textile startup when she saw a near-identical version being sold elsewhere.

Her creation, deeply rooted in Kashmiri tradition, had no legal protection.

“I realized ideas can disappear if there is no shield around them,” she said.

Afiya was one of more than seventy entrepreneurs, researchers, and startup founders who attended an Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) awareness workshop at the Atal Incubation Centre of the CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine on November 13.

The session, organized by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises under its National Outreach Mission, emphasized that innovation alone is not enough. Protecting it is crucial for growth.

Dr. Shahid Jibran, CEO of the incubation centre, opened the workshop with a simple message:“Protecting your intellectual property ensures ideas can grow, scale, and benefit both your business and society.”

Mohammed Tariq Ishtiaq, Assistant Director at the MSME office in Srinagar, highlighted Kashmir's textile sector as an example. He explained that registering a weaving design or trademark allows products to command higher prices, enter national markets, and reduce imitation risks.

Prof. Parvez A. Mir, CEO of the CIED-IUST Foundation, encouraged participants to connect research-driven innovation with entrepreneurship to drive regional growth.

Entrepreneurs shared their experiences and sought expert guidance on safeguarding their ideas.

Ubaid Mehraj, managing director of L-Crystal, said,“Registering a design or process turns creativity into a business asset. It protects ideas, opens opportunities, and lets your business contribute to society.”

From the government side, Saheel Alaqband outlined schemes like the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) and SRI Funds, showing how financial support can reinforce intellectual property protection.

Attorney Zainab Syed led a technical session on registering designs, trademarks, and patents, and discussed how MSMEs can leverage the Intellectual Property Facilitation Centre.

The workshop included a lively Q&A where participants asked about costs, timelines, and commercializing ideas in Kashmir context.

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