8th UK-India Science and Innovation Council Statement

The UK and India have agreed new science and innovation partnerships, including on technology, research and AI cooperation, to boost growth and innovation.

We, Dr Jitendra Singh, Honourable Minister of State (Independent Charge) for the Ministries of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences and Rt Hon Jonathan Reynolds MP, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade of the United Kingdom, met today in New Delhi for the 8th UK-India Science and Innovation Council. 

We reaffirmed our shared ambition to build a deeper, more strategic India-UK science, research and innovation partnership that connects world-class research with industry, investment and real-world impact. We welcomed the opportunity to build on the Technology Security Initiative (TSI), India UK MoU on Research and Innovation partnership, the UK-India Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement and Vision 2035, providing a stronger platform for strategic collaboration and industrial investment.  

We welcomed progress since the last Council and agreed that the next phase of cooperation should strengthen institutional partnerships, accelerate technology translation and commercialisation, support collaboration and exchange between researchers, and deliver tangible benefits for researchers, innovators, businesses and citizens in both countries. We agreed the Council would be elevated to match our increased ambition. 

Strengthening Research and Innovation Partnerships 

Our objective is to connect the UK and India's research systems more closely and turn more joint research into technologies, products and businesses. Since 2008, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Government of India have jointly invested more than £450 million to support over 290 projects and 1,665 publications. Joint publications have increased by 238% since 2013 and are cited 120% above the global average. 

We launched the UK-India Technology Translation Partnership with the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India. It will connect UK Catapults with India's Science and Technology Clusters to support technology development, validation, industry collaboration, pilots and commercialisation.  

We also: 

• agreed to explore a partnership between Russell Group universities and India's Technology Innovation Hubs in mutually agreed areas; 

• welcomed the Thematic Analysis for the UK-India Research and Innovation Corridor, identifying seven shared themes and five priority opportunities; 

• announced the InnoXchange Programme, connecting start-ups, incubators and accelerators; 

• agreed to explore a partnership with the Anusandhan National Research Foundation to link research and technology translation with investment and scale-up; 

• welcomed the Phase 2 Implementation Agreement for the ISIS Neutron and Muon Source partnership. A further £3 million investment by India's Department of Science and Technology over five years will expand access for Indian researchers, support early-career researcher development and strengthen collaboration in advanced materials, physical sciences and multidisciplinary research. 

Advancing Emerging Technology Cooperation including TSI 

Our objective is to develop and deploy critical and emerging technologies that support growth and security in both countries. We welcomed progress under the Technology Security Initiative through various initiatives like the Connectivity and Innovation Centre, Joint AI Centre and Critical Minerals Guild.  

We welcomed: 

• a Genomic Centre of Excellence between Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) India Pvt. Ltd and India's Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics; 

• the UK-India Biomanufacturing Partnership between the UK's Centre for Process Innovation and India's Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council, accelerating biotechnology translation and scale-up; 

• expanded collaboration between UK and Indian partners in biomanufacturing and biotechnology, genomics, femtech and sustainable agriculture; 

• agreed to partner on carbon capture, utilisation and storage, electricity grid resilience, and energy storage and advanced battery technologies; 

• opportunities for future collaboration between UKRI and Government of India in next-generation batteries, pharmaceuticals and medical technologies. 

Delivering the Partnership 

• We tasked officials and delivery partners to take forward the initiatives agreed through the Council. 

• We agreed to maintain momentum across the UK-India science, innovation and technology partnership ahead of the next Council.