India, Denmark agree to strengthen ‘green strategic partnership’
NEW DELHI: India and Denmark on Saturday agreed on a fiveyear action plan to take forward their unique “green strategic partnership” and signed four agreements aimed at boosting cooperation in green technologies and management of natural resources such as groundwater.
Following a meeting with his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the green strategic partnership finalised a year ago reflected the foresight of both countries and respect for the environment.
“This partnership is an example of how by collective effort, through technology, one can work for green growth while preserving the environment. Today, we not only reviewed progress made under this partnership, but reiterated our commitment to increasing cooperation on climate change in the near future,” Modi said.
Frederiksen said cooperation between India and Denmark is a “great example of how green growth and green transition can go hand in hand”. She noted that while Denmark has the skills in the field of green technologies, India has the scale to use them to benefit a population of more than a billion. “Our green cooperation is now part of a very ambitious five-year joint action plan,” Frederiksen said.
The five-year action plan for 2021-26 aims to consolidate green and low carbon growth and focuses on sectors such as water, renewable energy, climate action, circular economy, sustainable and smart cities, cooperation in intellectual property rights; maritime cooperation, food and agriculture and health and life science.
Among the four agreements signed on Saturday was an MoU between the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, the National Geophysical Research Institute in Hyderabad, and Aarhus University the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland on mapping groundwater resources and aquifers.
Reenat Sandhu, secretary (West) in the external affairs ministry, said that the issue of Kim Davy was raised in the meeting. “We have an understanding that the legal process must go forward and both countries are working on it,” she said.
In 2012, India scaled down diplomatic ties with Denmark to signal its displeasure over the refusal of Danish officials to appeal in the SC against a lower court’s order barring Davy’s extradition.