 "India, Germany to improve cooperation in clean energy, mobility sectors")
Ahead of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's visit to India, New Delhi and Berlin have decided to shore up cooperation in the areas of renewable energy, urban development, agroecology and mobility.
Ways to expand engagement in these key areas figured prominently at the development policy negotiations led by India's Department for Economic Affairs and Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, German officials said on Saturday.
Both sides agreed to continue their cooperation in the areas of renewable energy, urban development, mobility and agroecology in the coming years, they said.
The Indo-German cooperation is strategically guided by the "Partnership for Green and Sustainable Development", which was established in 2022 following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Scholz.
The German chancellor is scheduled to visit India next month.
"Germany and India share a long-standing, trusting and strategic partnership," said Barbara Schafer, the head of the German delegation at the talks.
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"This has been further demonstrated in 2024 by both sides. With the launch of the 'India-Germany Platform for Investments in Renewable Energy Worldwide'," she said.
The new initiative was launched on September 16 during the fourth RE-Invest in Gujarat's Gandhinagar.
"With our commitments this year, Germany has made it clear that it reliably fulfils its international obligations," Schafer explained.
The German official said it is important not only to make commitments but also to achieve concrete results.
"We have already succeeded in many areas in our partnership with India -- through Indo-German cooperation, 7,700 kilometres of modern transmission lines have been built and with German (co-)financing, metros in Mumbai, Surat and Ahmedabad have been constructed," she said.
"Germany supports Indian farmers in making their agricultural production more climate-resilient, resource-efficient and sustainable. Additionally, we are working on triangular projects in Peru and various African countries to leverage our respective strengths there," Schafer added.
The German side said these developments create favourable conditions for the upcoming Indo-German government consultations at the level of Prime Minister Modi and Chancellor Scholz, scheduled for October.
"The term 'sustainable energy transition' takes on a new quality when Germany and India combine their unique capabilities, setting a positive example not only in their own countries but also globally," said Uwe Gehlen, Head of the German Development Cooperation in India and Minister Counsellor at the German Embassy.
This year, Germany has allocated more than Euros 1 billion for initiatives in these areas, in the form of concessional loans and technical cooperation (capacity building), according to a German readout.
The funds are earmarked for projects in the following sectors -- renewable energy, transmission lines or energy distribution, urban development, mobility, forest ecosystems, water, sustainable and resilient agriculture, agroecology, vocational education and cooperation with the National Mission for Clean Ganga, it said.