Lex Delles, Minister of the Economy, SME, Energy and Tourism, Govt of Luxembourg, currently on India visit, today called on Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences and Minister of State for the Department of Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh, and proposed identifying concrete areas of collaboration between the two countries, primarily in the Space sector, as also in other emerging technologies and life sciences.

The proposed mechanism could also explore cooperation in areas including Artificial Intelligence, quantum technologies, advanced materials and life sciences, and help develop specific inputs from both sides ahead of the proposed State Visit of Luxembourg to India in January 2027.

The bilateral meeting between the two Ministers discussed the current status of India-Luxembourg cooperation in Space, future developments in the sector, opportunities for further institutional and commercial collaboration, and preparations for the proposed State Visit.

The Luxembourg delegation included senior officials from the Minister’s Cabinet, economic policy, industry, new technologies and research, as well as the Luxembourg Space Agency. The Indian side included senior officials from the Department of Science & Technology, Department of Space and Ministry of External Affairs.

Dr. Jitendra Singh said that the warmth and strong foundation of India-Luxembourg relations provide a favourable basis for taking cooperation into newer and deeper areas. He also referred to the virtual meeting which PM Sh Narendra Modi had with his Luxembourg counterpart in 2020.

Dr Jitendra Singh also referred to the considerable common ground between the two countries in science technology and innovation and said that the strengths of both sides could be brought together in emerging areas with high potential for mutual benefit.

The Minister said that Space remains an important pillar of the bilateral partnership, with India and Luxembourg already having an MoU on cooperation in the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes, signed in February 2022. The partnership has also developed a commercial dimension, including communication satellite transponder leasing and the launch of two Luxembourg satellites on commercial terms onboard PSLV. IN-SPACe and the Luxembourg Space Agency have also been engaging to promote greater interaction between the two countries’ space ecosystems.

Dr. Jitendra Singh shared India’s broader space roadmap, including the importance of navigation and communication satellites in the near term and the country’s long-term ambition of establishing an Indian space station by 2035 and undertaking a human landing on the Moon by 2040. He said the expanding participation of the private sector in India’s space programme is also opening up new possibilities for international and commercial partnerships.

The two sides discussed opportunities for greater engagement of Luxembourg’s space industry with India’s rapidly expanding private space ecosystem. Potential areas identified from the Indian side include Earth Observation imagery, communication transponders, commercial satellite and satellite-subsystem realisation, launch vehicle services, ground stations and mission support. Luxembourg-based companies, including SES, are already engaged with Indian entities and IN-SPACe on opportunities relating to satellite capacity, user terminals and satellite and ground subsystems.

Artificial Intelligence and high-performance computing emerged as another important area of potential cooperation. Dr. Jitendra Singh spoke about India’s efforts to expand computing capacity, procure additional GPUs and develop indigenous large language models suited to the country’s linguistic diversity. The Luxembourg side shared its plans for a new AI-oriented high-performance computing facility and expressed interest in enabling greater interaction with the private sector. The two sides discussed the possibility of connecting Indian and Luxembourg companies and institutions in this area.

Quantum technologies were also discussed as an area offering significant scope for collaboration. Dr. Jitendra Singh spoke about India’s National Quantum Mission and the progress made in quantum communication, computing, sensing and related areas. He said quantum technologies have applications across sectors, including healthcare, security and space, and that optical communication in conjunction with the space sector could provide a particularly promising area for cooperation between India and Luxembourg.

In life sciences and biotechnology, Dr. Jitendra Singh spoke about India’s BioE3 policy and the country’s focus on biotechnology-led economic and scientific development. He referred to the potential for collaboration with Luxembourg institutions such as the Luxembourg Institute of Health and the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, particularly in areas of common interest including neurodegenerative diseases and Alzheimer’s disease.

The Minister also spoke about India’s growing public-private approach to vaccine development and medical research and the recent opening up of nuclear medicine research to the private sector. He said the development could create further opportunities for international institutions and industry to participate in areas of universal health relevance.

Minister Lex Delles spoke about Luxembourg’s growing engagement with India in space, satellite communications, Artificial Intelligence, cybersecurity and high-performance computing, and the opportunities for Luxembourg companies to deepen their activities in India. He also spoke about the importance of greater interaction between the two countries’ government institutions and private-sector ecosystems.

The meeting also discussed the proposed State Visit from Luxembourg to India in January 2027 as an opportunity to give greater momentum to bilateral cooperation. Dr. Jitendra Singh suggested that the Embassy could remain engaged with the concerned Indian institutions so that areas of interest are identified in advance and specific proposals can be developed for discussion during the visit.

The meeting reflected the growing breadth of India-Luxembourg cooperation from an established space partnership towards a wider engagement in AI, quantum technologies, life sciences, advanced technologies and commercial opportunities, with both sides exploring practical avenues to connect their respective institutions, research ecosystems and industries.
 

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NKR/AK

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