Recent 6 months news in Agreements

The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) has signed a tripartite MoU with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co Ltd (HD KSOE), National Shipbuilding & Heavy Industries Park Tamil Nadu Ltd (NSHIP-TN), and Sagarmala Finance Corporation Ltd (SMFCL) to develop the first Mega Greenfield Shipyard in India at Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu.

The project will have an annual shipbuilding capacity of 2.5 million Gross Tonnage (MGT). The agreement was exchanged during the state visit of the President of the Republic of Korea (ROK) Lee Jae Myung. It is part of the India-ROK Comprehensive Framework ‘VOYAGES’ (Shared Vision for Operation of Yard Assisted Growth with Efficiency and Scale).

India and the UAE have signed 6 agreements to enhance cooperation in the energy and defence sectors during the visit of PM Narendra Modi to Abu Dhabi. Entities based in the UAE have committed an investment of $5 billion in India.

The UAE has also announced a plan to double the crude oil export capacity by 2027. This involves the construction of an additional pipeline to the Port of Fujairah to bypass the Strait of Hormuz.

IndiaAI Mission has signed an MoU with the Bengaluru-based Karya, a Nonprofit Organization (NPO), to enhance accessibility within the AI economy. The partnership focuses on data, technology, and capacity building, specifically to strengthen the infrastructure of AIKosh, the national AI data platform of India for research and development (R&D). Both organizations also aim to develop model evaluation frameworks and establish standards for dataset quality, validation, and interoperability.

The Ministry of Textiles has signed an MoU with the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) to conduct evidence-based policy research in the textile and apparel sector.

The collaboration aims to support the formulation of data-driven and analytically robust policies to strengthen the domestic textile industry.

The Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has signed an MoU with Prasar Bharati, the public service broadcaster of India, to enhance investor awareness across the country. Under the partnership, informative scroll messages will be broadcast on Doordarshan (DD) across its national and regional networks.

India has partnered with Japan to strengthen bilateral cooperation in health research and quantum technology. A Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) was signed between the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), and the Department of Science and Technology (DST) to collaborate on biomedical research and medical devices.

Additionally, a Letter of Intent (LoI) was signed between the Cabinet Office of Japan and the DST for cooperation in the field of Quantum Science and Technology.

Union Minister S Jaishankar visited Jamaica, marking the first ever bilateral visit by an Indian External Affairs Minister (EAM) to the country. During the visit, he held delegation-level talks with Andrew Michael Holness, the Prime Minister of Jamaica. India and Jamaica signed 3 MoUs to enhance cooperation in health, broadcasting, and the solarisation of the Hugh Lawson Shearer Building.

The Maritime India Foundation (MIF), the implementing agency for the Sagarmala Startup Innovation Initiative, has signed MoUs with the IIT Madras, IIT Bombay, and the Indian Maritime University (IMU) to establish Maritime Innovation Hubs (MIH).

The agreement marks the transition of the initiative into its execution phase. Under the partnership, the MIHs will mentor 36 startups that are currently developing 40 priority innovation projects to address critical challenges in the maritime sector of India.

Cape Breton University (CBU) of Canada has signed three MoUs with Indian academic and policy organizations during a visit led by the President of the university David C Dingwall. The agreements are, CBU has signed a 5-year MoU with BML Munjal University (BMU) for student and faculty exchanges, joint research, and collaborative conferences.

The National Education Forum (NEF) has been appointed as the official partner of CBU to manage the engagements with the government of India and academic institutions. The university has partnered with the Gujarat-based Lok Jagruti Kendra (LJK) University to develop a localized academic network.

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has signed a 5-year MoU with the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) to strengthen the cybersecurity and digital forensic capabilities of the Aadhaar infrastructure.

The Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS) has signed reform-linked MoUs with Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Tripura, Mizoram, and Ladakh under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) 2.0.

The MoUs establish a framework for decentralized governance by empowering Gram Panchayats and Village Water & Sanitation Committees (VWSCs) to oversee the operation and management of in-village water supply systems.

The National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) in Raebareli has signed an MoU, a Confidential Disclosure Agreement (CDA), and a Technology Transfer Agreement with the Hyderabad-based Lofty Laboratories.

The collaboration aims to promote research, innovation, and technology commercialisation to strengthen the ties between academia and industry in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors.

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Institute of Science Communication and Policy Research (CSIR-NIScPR) has signed an MoU with the Research and Information System for the Developing Countries (RIS) to strengthen cooperation in science, technology, and innovation (STI) policy and science diplomacy.

IndiaAI, a flagship initiative of the Government of India (GoI), has signed an MoU with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to enhance healthcare outcomes through the responsible and scalable application of AI.

The collaborative framework is built on three primary pillars: the ‘AIKosh’ dataset platform, compute access, and the development of collaborative AI use cases.

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoC&I) has signed an MoU with Chamber India to enhance the Indian startup ecosystem and promote innovation-led development.

The partnership aims to increase interaction between startups, corporate bodies, investors, and global stakeholders, while facilitating international linkages and cross-border collaboration.

India and the European Union (EU) have launched a joint initiative to improve Electric Vehicle (EV) battery recycling under the India-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) - Working Group 2 on Green and Clean Energy Technologies.

The project involves a third coordinated call for proposals to secure critical raw materials and accelerate the global transition to a circular economy. The initiative has a combined funding pool of €15.2 million (₹169 crore). The component of the EU is funded through the Horizon Europe programme, while the part of India is supported by the Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI).

The Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India (GoI) has signed an MoU with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) at Kartavya Bhavan in New Delhi.

The collaboration aims to strengthen the national Research and Development (R&D) ecosystem by facilitating synergy between industry, academia, and research institutions.

Union Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda and his Japanese counterpart Kimi Onoda have co-chaired the 3rd Joint Committee Meeting (JCM) on Healthcare between India and Japan at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. The meeting focused on deepening the bilateral partnership through strategic cooperation in innovation, technology, and research.

Union Minister Piyush Goyal and Todd McClay have signed the India–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (IN-NZ FTA) at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.

Under the IN-NZ FTA, India has secured 100% duty-free access on all 8,284 tariff lines to New Zealand. In return, India has liberalized 70.03% of its tariff lines, which covers 95% of the total bilateral trade value.

New Zealand has opened 118 service sectors with Most Favoured Nation (MFN) commitments across 139 sub-sectors. Furthermore, New Zealand has committed to an investment of $20 billion over a 15 year period in sectors like infrastructure, renewable energy, manufacturing, and startups.

Coca-Cola India has signed a 3-year MoU with Invest UP, the investment promotion agency of the Uttar Pradesh government, to bolster environmental sustainability, community welfare, and access to safe drinking water in the state.

The agreement focuses on developing water access infrastructure and safe hydration solutions. It also aims to strengthen waste collection and recycling systems to improve environmental hygiene.