It is no secret that the United States has been scaling up pressure on India to adopt intellectual property measures similar to those common in the United States and the European Union. But to what extent does India’s new government led by the business-friendly Narendra Modi see eye to eye with US official position? Can India, the “pharmacy of the world”, resolve the friction between pharmaceutical patents and access to affordable medicines without putting off foreign investors? The vitriolic and polarising debate surrounding these questions has got a fresh lease of life following US President Barack Obama’s landmark three-day visit to India this week.

There is an uptick in India-United States relations. US President Barack Obama will be in India in January as the chief guest at the country’s Republic Day Parade. Obama, who hosted India’s new Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Washington in September, will become the first US president to attend such a celebration, a display of India’s military might and ethnic diversity, as well as the first to visit India twice while in office.