The UK and India Wednesday signed an agreement to collaborate on science and innovation. A memorandum of understanding on research was signed between the two countries in the UK Parliament, according to an official statement.
The objective of this agreement is to enable quicker, deeper collaboration on science between the two countries, with the aim of helping economic growth, creating skilled jobs and improving lives in the UK, India, and worldwide. Through this agreement, the two countries hope to minimise red tape standing in the way of major collaborations.
This agreement will also bring in new joint research schemes aiming to deliver progress on some of the biggest issues facing the world, from climate change and pandemic preparedness through AI and machine learning.
Several new programmes will be also launched under this research partnership, such as the establishment of a new UK-India Net Zero Innovation Virtual Centre focusing on industrial decarbonisation and launching the first ever UK-India scientific deep sea voyage. A programme of UK-India university partnerships, including one between Aston University and CSIR Dehradun on sustainable biofuels will also be launched under this partnership. There are also plans to launch a partnership for decarbonising India’s pharmaceutical and fine chemicals industries, among other plans.
The collaborative activities carried out under the MoU will be supported by joint funding agreed by both sides, with finances for each programme determined between the UK and India on a case-by-case basis, the official release stated.
