The Patent Office has been committed to revise the Manual of
Patent Office Practice and Procedure (hereinafter the Manual) from
time to time based on interpretations by a Court of Law, statutory
amendments and valuable inputs from the stakeholders. Accordingly,
after a long gap of around 8 years, the erstwhile Manual (http://www.ipindia.nic.in/writereaddata/Portal/IPOGuidelinesManuals/1_28_1_manual-of-patent-office-practice_and-procedure.pdf)
has been superseded by the new Manual (http://www.ipindia.nic.in/writereaddata/Portal/Images/pdf/Manual_for_Patent_Office_
Practice_and_Procedure_.pdf),published on November 26, 2019
by the Controller General of Patents.
Since 2011, multiple amendments have been made in the Patents Rules 2003, and considerable changes have been made in the patent practice and procedure, including automation and electronic work flow, and it was the need of the hour to revise the manual to capture these developments and provide more transparency in the functioning of the Patent Office.
While there are numerous changes over the older version of the manual, to capture the developments and also to provide further clarifications over the already covered provisions, the key changes can be read from the pdf link below
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.