Thursday, January 5 2006 09:31 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Hyderabad: European Union regards scientific collaboration with India as a 'strategic priority' and is looking forward to strengthen cooperation under its Research Framework porgramme, a senior EU official said here yesterday (Jan 4,2006).

"Collaboration with India is a strategic priority for EU. This is because both India and EU have common objectives in terms of science and are trying to pursue the goals of becoming knowledge-based economies," Andrew Sors, Minister Counsellor and head of EU science and technology section said at a round table.

In this context, the seventh EU Research Framework Programme (2007-2013) offers great possibilities for cooperation between the two sides. Though the programme did not have any funding earmarked for India, it is open for any country including India, he said.

Speaking on the issue, Y Kumar, Scientific Adviser and head of International Cooperation in the Department of Science and Technology, said India is looking for equal activity-based partnership with EU and not funding.

"We are looking for equal activity-based research collaboration with the EU and are keen to work with them as equal partners so that we can share the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) on equal basis," he said.

Kumar said already several scientists and projects have been short-listed for collaborative research. India has identified projects in Information Communication Technology (ICT), climate change, automotive research, nanotechnology and functional materials among others for collaborative research with the EU.

"Our lab costs being one-fifth of that in the EU, we see tremendous benefit in the collaboration on equal activity basis as it will enable us to participate in research with some of the best scientists in the EU," Kumar said.

"The EU research programme is apart from the research programmes of individual member countries. It is not inter-governmental but a collaborative effort in which institutions from different countries join after proposing research activities which are pursued after EU Commission's approval," Sors said.

The selection of the research project by the EU Commission is done after peer review and scrutiny by senior scientists. The topics identified are of mutual benefit for participating institutions and countries, he said.

While the 6th framework programme had been allocated 17 billion euros, funding is likely to be increased substantially for the 7th framework progrmme, he said.

India had entered into formal agreement for collaboration in the 6th EU Research Framework Programme in 2001. Last year, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and British Prime Minister and then Chairman of EU Commission Tony Blair had committed to further research collaboration under the 7th framework programme.

Apart from the EU Research Framework Programme, India has collaborated with European companies mostly on commercial basis on several projects.