On May 25,2018, Visit of Prime Minister of Netherlands to India concluded. Following are the agreements signed by the two countries.
‘Clean Air India Initiative’ launched
On May 25,2018, the PM of Netherlands Mark Rutte launches ‘Clean Air India ‘ initiative in New Delhi.
Objective: It aims to curb air pollution in indian cities .
Salient Features:
It is a joint collaboration of India’s ‘Startup India’ and Netherlands ‘Get In the Ring’ platforms and INDUS forum an online matchmaking platform of Indian and Dutch businesses.
- For monitoring and combating air pollution the Dutch firms would sale equipment such as sensors and data and solutions .
- The main focus is minimizing air pollution in Delhi as per the ‘INDUS impact’ project which aims to stop hazardous burning of paddy which cause air pollution.
Signed 51 agreements covering government and private sectors;Netherlands joins Solar Alliance.
On May 25,2018 , Netherlands signed 51 agreements covering government and private sectors. It also joined the International Solar Alliance.
Key points
- Agreements have been singed in areas of trade and investment especially in clean technology , cyber security, food processing, health care and smart cities.
- It will bring the largest trade mission to the country
- MOU with the state of Haryana in the agri sector especially horticulture sector. Netherlands was made the partner country for the Tech Summit in 2019.
- PM Rutte signed 40 MOUs with the private sector in the areas of agri-food,water, horticulture, hi-tech and IT smart cities.
- Opening of a new Dutch Consulate general in Bengaluru.
- During this Visit,Netherland became the 64th Country to join ISA.
E-logistics co to launch world’s 1st e-freight passage
On May 25,2018, e-logistics company to launch world’s 1st e-freight passage .
Key points:
- Mumbai Headquartered e-logistics company Cogoport to establish world’s first digital freight passage with Netherlands as the gateway.
- This announcement was made on the ‘Smart and Sustainable port led development’ in Mumbai.
- The port of Amsterdam will work with JM Baxi for operations of the Mumbai port terminal.
- MOU between municipality of Amsterdam and Maharashtra to work on urban planning, waste management & waste processing.
- GKN Fokker Elmoa Dutch company will be establishing a manufacturing facility of wiring systems in Pune.
Prime Minister of Netherlands Inaugurates Indo-Dutch Ganga Forum at a Function in New Delhi
On May 25,2018, PM of Netherlands inaugurated Indo-Dutch Ganga Forum in New Delhi.
Salient Features of the Forum:
- Session on “Innovative Financing Models for Indo-Dutch PPP Projects”were introduced.
- Under this project 2 missions of National Mission for Clean Ganga (NCMG ) would start in Varanasi and in Haridwar.
- Also sessions on “Dutch Approach to Partnership in Public Utilities in India” and on “Innovative Dutch Solutions for Urban Water Challenges” took place.
- Netherlands joined hands with Uttar Pradesh to reduce water consumption and start cleaner technologies in Kanpur.
India & Netherlands discuss ways to strengthen partnership in agriculture and allied sectors
On May 25,2018, The Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Mr. Radha Mohan Singh discussed ways to strengthen partnership in agriculture and allied sectors with his counter part the Deputy Prime Minister and Minitern of Agriculture , Food quality and Nature M/s. Carola Schouten in New Delhi.
Key points:
- Mr. Singh extended the Action plan of Joint Working Group(5thmeeting having being held at March 2018) till 2021.
- Commissioning of a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for vegetablesat Baramati and a CoE of flowers in Telegaon in Maharashtra . They focus on making technology affordable and accessible to the small and marginal farmers.
- Agreements on areas like technology for crop residue management , in the field of bovine breeding , dairy development , animal health and porcine development.
Indo-Dutch Startup Initiative: #StartUpLink to be Launched
On May 23,2018, an Indo-Dutch Startup Initiative has been launched called : ‘#StartUpLink’.
Objective:
To enhance innovation and entrepreneurship and creating market expansion for startups.
Features:
- Invest India from the Indian Govt’s side and Dutch government launched it in Bengaluru.
- Startup India Hub and Netherlands Enterprise Agency of Netherlands are the gateways from either sides.
- Under this partnership Shell has launched Shell E4 Hub to provide start ups the infrastructure , industry knowledge and a world class accelerator program to empower entrepreneurs.
- A delegation of 10-12 Dutch startups are expected to visit India .
- StartUp India and Dutch Basecamp to implement the startup mission from India to Netherlands.
India, Netherlands to cooperate in IT, science, health
On May 25,2018, India and Netherlands to cooperate each other in IT, Science and health sector. This year is the 10th anniversary of Indo-Dutch collaboration in the fields of Science,Technology and Innovation (STI).
Keypoints:
- Collaboration in the global fight against Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR)and working in areas of cooperation under India’s National Action Plan on AMR.
- Selection of Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh for the pilot project of ‘One Health ‘ approach.
- Collaboration in space technology for efficient implementation in food security and climate change .
- Acknowledging the bilateral interactions between India’s Dept . of Science and technology, Dept. of Biotechnology and Ministry of Electronic and Information with Netherlands’ Organization for Scientific Research (NOW) and Netherlands Enterprise Agency (NVO).
India, Netherlands to promote waste-to-wealth approach
On May 24,2018, India and Netherlands join hands to promote waste-to-wealth approach.
Keypoints:
- To assist Kanpur and Unnaobased leather companies to adopt eco-friendly technologies and water conservation techniques for efficient agri practices.
- MOU in the field of water management and Clean Ganga campaign.
- Indo-Dutch research called ‘Water in the City’ and continuous exchange of information on river modeling using satellite data.
- To strengthen direct air connectivity between the two countries.
- MOU between foreign service institutes of the two countries.
- Organization of Phd fellowship programs between India’s Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) at the University of Maastricht, Technical University of Delft, Erasmus University Medical Center, Vrije Universiteit, and Rijksuniversiteit Groningen in the Netherlands.
About Netherlands:
- Netherlands have second-largest Indian diaspora in Europe.
- Capital: Amsterdam.
