The agreement is yet another step in the increasing cooperation between India and the Jewish state - bonds that already include extensive military and diplomatic ties.
The agreement was signed by Indian Minister of Science and Technology Kapil Sibal and Israel's Minister of Industry and Trade Ehud Olmert. The ministers outlined cooperation in the areas of nano-technology, water management, bio-technology, alternative energy, and space and aeronautics, as five priority areas of common interest for enhanced collaboration.
"We have collaborated with each other in defense and strategic areas, but we need to move on to areas in which we can affect the lives of the ordinary people," Sibal said.
Under the agreement, each side will contribute $1 million to provide risk-free grants to entrepreneurs from both countries.
"There is enormous potential [for cooperation between Israel and India],” Olmert said. “I think India is emerging as a major economy and Israel has designated India as one of the main targets of our foreign trade in the next five years."
Indian Minister Sibal, who is visiting Israel, also participated in a workshop at the Technion Institute of Technology in Haifa. Sibal said there that cooperation in science and technology is the real bridge between countries, cutting across national boundaries. He said the two countries should increase interaction between young students.