[NEW DELHI] India and the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed to collaborative research, notably in biotechnology and agriculture.

The countries signed the declaration this week (6 November) at the 12th Technology Summit and Technology Platform, held in New Delhi, India.

It specifies that they will collaborate in research and technology development relating to biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, agriculture and advanced materials.

India and the ASEAN member states — Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam — also plan to create a common science and technology development fund, and to create an India-ASEAN institute for intellectual property.

A definite schedule for the collaboration will be finalised in a month, according to Anjan Das, head of technology for the Confederation of Indian Industry that co-organised the summit along with the Department of Science and Technology and the ASEAN Committee on Science and Technology.

India's minister for Science and Technology, Shri Kapil Sibal, said that a roadmap will be prepared with input from the confederation, the Indian Science and Technology Ministry and the ASEAN secretariat.

Sibal said that the declaration will encourage links between academic institutions, research laboratories, professional bodies and industry, creating a 'knowledge grid'.

The agreement will help improve scientists' mobility, and foster further technology summits on a regular basis, he added.