Dr. Jitendra Singh, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, held discussions with the President of the Swiss Confederation, Guy Parmelin, in New Delhi to strengthen India-Switzerland cooperation in the fields of science, technology, research, and innovation.
The main focus of the discussion was on moving the bilateral science and technology partnership towards a more structured and long-term framework, with greater institutional cooperation in emerging fields. President Parmelin stated that Switzerland has allocated an additional CHF 45 million for this partnership and expects a similar commitment from India to strengthen the joint research framework.
Dr. Jitendra Singh highlighted India’s growing focus on mission-oriented and interdisciplinary research, covering areas such as Artificial Intelligence, biotechnology, vaccine development, genome sequencing, quantum technology, space and deep-ocean research, as well as the blue and bio-economies. He said AI is increasingly being viewed as an enabling technology with applications across various scientific fields.
Both sides also discussed AI and its widespread use. Parmelin emphasized the need to ensure that countries in the Global South benefit from AI and invited India to the upcoming Geneva AI Summit.
Welcoming the progress made under the Indo-Swiss Research Framework (ISRF) and the Indo-Swiss Joint Scientific Board, the Minister stated that this would give a new direction to scientific cooperation between the two countries. He also highlighted the ‘Letter of Intent’ between the SNSF and the DST, as well as the Implementation Agreement between ZHAW and DST.
India and Switzerland have cooperated in science and technology since 2003, with the partnership expanding into areas including AI, quantum technology, clean energy, ocean research, pharmaceuticals, biomedical research and space technologies.
Dr. Jitendra Singh stated that a regular working mechanism between India and Switzerland would help sustain cooperation and ensure timely follow-up on initiatives. He expressed confidence that the proposed research framework would play a pivotal role in transforming scientific collaboration between the two nations from a project-based partnership into a long-term, strategic partnership.
(PIB)
