Agreement between India and Germany for Scientific Cooperation

LOK SABHA During the recent visit of German Chancellor to India on 30th October 2007, India and Germany signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to set-up Indo-German Science Research and Technology Centre (IGSTC) in India, under the umbrella Inter-Governmental Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Scientific Research and Technological Development signed in 1974.

The details and salient features of the MoU are as below:

I. The Centre will be named the “Indo-German Science and Technology Centre”(IGSTSC) and will be established in New Delhi. The IGSTC in New Delhi would be registered as Society under the Societies Registration Act (Act XXI of 1860, Punjab Amendment Act 1957) as extended to Delhi.

II. The objectives of the IGSTC are to

• Play a proactive role in facilitating participation of industry in joint R&D projects,
• Provide/assist in mobilizing resources to carry out industrial R&D projects,
• Promote electronic exchange and dissemination of information on opportunities in bilateral S&T cooperation. The Centre will also prepare/compile state-of-the-art reports on topics of interest with the help of highly qualified scientists and technologists, one from each country,
• Provide individual advice to institutes and industries from either country on the possibilities of Indo-German cooperation and help in the identification of suitable partners,
• Facilitate and promote Indo-German bilateral collaborations in basic and applied science, research and technology through substantive interaction among government, academia and industry,
• Encourage public-private partnerships (PPP) to foster elements of innovation and application and cultivate a culture of cooperation between science and industry,
• Nurture contacts between young and mid career scientists and technologists to develop a sense of mutual trust, leadership and entrepreneurship,
• Develop cooperation through the identification of scientists and scientific institutions of the two countries,
• Organize workshops, seminars, training programmes and other types of events on topics of mutual interest, and to
• Support or conduct any other mutually agreed future activities.
India and Germany will allocate 2 million Euros each per year for next 5 years to run and achieve the objective of the Centre.

This information was given by the Union Minister of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri Kapil Sibal in the Lok sabha today.

Source : Press Information Bureau
Date : November 23, 2007