India, Denmark sign 4 accords; Modi calls for Danish investment in India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with Prime Minister of Kingdom of Denmark Mette Frederiksen at the Ceremonial Reception, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on Saturday. (ANI Photo)


India and Denmark on Saturday signed four key agreements as Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited Danish companies to take advantage of economic reforms in India and liberally invest in this country, especially in the manufacturing sector.

”India is not new for Danish companies. They have been investing for long in sectors like energy, food processing, logistics, infrastructure, machinery and software. They have not only contributed to our ‘Make in India’ programme but also to our ‘Make in India for the World’ objective,” Modi said after wide-ranging talks with visiting Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. She is the first head of state or government to visit India after the outbreak of Coronavirus-19 in March last year.

Modi said he had discussed regional issues as well as global developments with the Danish PM and appreciated the support India had received from Denmark at different international forums. In the future too, India and Denmark, the two democratic nations, would continue to work for rules-based order, he added.

The Danish Prime Minister said she saw her visit as a milestone for the relations between the two nations. “We consider India as a close partner. I see this visit as a milestone for Denmark-India bilateral relations,” she said.

Frederiksen praised New Delhi for taking responsibility for the issue of green transition in India and the rest of the world.

Earlier today, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar met with the Danish Prime Minister and said her India visit would advance the Green Strategic Partnership between the two countries.

The accords signed between the two countries included an MoU between the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research- National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, Aarhus University, Denmark and Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland on mapping of groundwater resources and aquifers.

The second agreement was signed on the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library Access Agreement between the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research and the Danish Patent and Trademark Office.

The third MoU was signed between the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru and Danfoss Industries Private Limited to establish a Centre of Excellence towards natural refrigerants for tropical climates with potential applications.

The fourth agreement was a Joint Letter of Intent between the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Government of the Republic of India and The Government of the Kingdom of Denmark.