India, Germany sign six pacts

To put together € 7 million for joint research in education Berlin (PTI): India and Germany on Thursday inked six key MoUs including that for putting together € 7 million for next four years towards joint research in the field of higher education and a pact for a soft loan of € 1 billion for strengthening the green energy corridor. A pact to promote German as a foreign language was also signed by the two sides following the 2nd round of inter-governmental Consultations in Berlin. Under pacts signed, both Germany and India have committed to € 3.5 million each towards working on joint research and innovation programmes. According to officials, under the strengthening of German language collaboration, currently 30,000 children in Kendriya Vidyalaya are learning German and under the pact they will try to increase the capacity. A pact regarding the establishment of green energy corridor was also signed besides one in agriculture and establishment of a working group in infrastructure, cooperation in standardisation, conformity assessment and product safety. Under the pact for the green energy corridor, the grid system in several states will be used to transmit energy produced by renewable and non-conventional means. Another pact for Indo-German civil security research was also signed. Minister for Human Resources Development Pallam Raju, who is accompanying Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on three-day bilateral visit here, said the two countries knew each other's strengths and have identified some areas for the joint research. The Human Resources Development Minister also said Germany has been on a "very sound technical footing" because of which there were many programmes assisted and handled by Germans in both IIT Chennai and IIT, Mandi. According to official data, around 4500 Indian students are pursuing various courses in Germany, while around 800 German students are studying or doing their internships in India. India and Germany have agreed to further expand and intensify bilateral cooperation in a number of fields, including trade and infrastructure, as they kicked off the second inter-governmental consultations at the Cabinet-level here. Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma and German Minister of Economics and Technology Philipp Roesler reached the accord at a bilateral meeting shortly before the two-day consultations were formally opened on Wednesday with a dinner hosted by Chancellor Angela Merkel in honour of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.