New Delhi: Recently, in a reply to a question in Rajya Sabha,Minister of State for Science and Technology Prithviraj Chavan informed that both India and Germany have mutually agreed for the setting up of an Indo-German Science and Technology Centre (IGSTC) in India.
Furthermore, Mr Chavan has also mentioned that each country has committed to contribute an equivalent amount of two million euro (approximately Rs.13 crores) per year for initial period of five years. He also added that the IGSTC shall be registered as Society under Societies Registration Act (Act XXI of 1860, Punjab Amendment Act 1957) as extended to NCR Delhi.
The upcoming technology centre shall be governed by a Governing Body (GB), which will comprise of equal number of members from India and Germany. The members of the GB will comprise of members selected from government, academia and industry from both the countries. The IGSTC shall be steered by an Indian Director nominated by the Government of India. The papoose of setting up of the IGSTC is to play a positive role to:
a) Facilitate participation of industry in joint research and development projects,
b) Provide/assist in mobilizing resources to carry out industrial research and development projects,
c) Facilitate and promote Indo-German bilateral collaborations in basic and applied science, research and technology through substantive interaction among government, academia and industry,
d) Encourage public-private partnerships to foster elements of innovation, application and cultivate a culture of cooperation between science and industry and
e) Develop cooperation through the identification of scientists and scientific institutions of the two countries.
