From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network

Bengaluru, Apr 15: With a view of boosting up the collaboration between India and France in the field of innovative technology, the Indo-French accelerator was launched in Bengaluru on Thursday. 

The event also coincided with the signing of MoU between Karnataka Innovative and Technological Society (KITS) and IFCCI (Indo-French Chamber of Commerce and Industry).

Deputy chief minister Dr C N Ashwath Narayan, who is also the minister of electronics, IT/BT and S&T portfolio, in whose presence MoU was signed said, “The Indo-French accelerator will be a great podium for the startups in India, particularly in Karnataka to explore further growing further in the global ecosystem.’’

"The MoU that is signed between KITS (of the department of electronics, IT/BT) and IFCCI (of France) will be an official agreement that will chart a suitable way forward for the mutual appraisal of the tech ecosystems of Karnataka and France,” Dr Narayan said.

France and India have always been very close. The ties between the two countries extend to the fields of culture, defence, economy, education, politics, and science. France has also emerged as a major source of FDI for India with more than 1,000 French establishments already present in India.

France is the ninth-largest foreign investor in India with a cumulative investment of USD 6.59 billion from April 2000 to December 2018 and India-France bilateral trade stood at EUR 11.52 billion, Dr Narayan explained.

Karnataka and France have also been longstanding partners. Bengaluru has become a foremost destination for French companies from the IT and consultancy sector.

Bengaluru hosts one of the main offices of Capgemini and is home to Gemalto, Technicolor and 3DS among others. Atos (IT services provider) which employs about 20 % of its global workforce in India, also operates an office in Bengaluru.

Several major banking and financial services providers are present, some of which are Crédit Agricole, Société Générale, BNP Paribas and Axa Bharti, he said.

The deputy chief minister said, “The government of Karnataka has been a pioneer in announcing sector-specific policies on IT, BT, ESDM (Electronics System Design and Manufacturing), and AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics) to give a push to the growth of the technology sectors and innovation in the State. Total FDI inflows in the state from 2000 to 2019 were recorded at US$ 49.7 billion, the third-highest in India.”

Department of Electronics, IT BT and S&T and Consulate of France have been strongly associated by means of various programs. There have been several institutions in France such as Business France, NUMA, Indo-French Chamber of Commerce among others that have undertaken projects for the benefit of the Karnataka stakeholders, Dr Narayan pointed out.

Karnataka has been one of the most proactive states in the country when it comes to COVID-19 management. Steps have been to scale up the production of COVID-19 vaccine dozes in the state to 17 crore per month which stands at 7 crore per month at present.

Apart from this, efforts to combat the pandemic include setting up war rooms, the Apthamitra app for medical guidance, fake news buster platform, he said.

IFCCI is a member of CCI France International, the network of the French Chambers of Commerce and Industry Abroad, comprises 124 French Chambers across the world in 95 countries with over 37,000 member companies and is the biggest private French network of companies in the world.

Jean-Vyes Le Drian, minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Emmanuel Lenain, ambassador of France to India, Marjorie Vanbaelinghem, consul general of France in Bengaluru, Dr E V Ramana Reddy, additional chief secretary, department of electronics, IT/BT and S&T, Gopala Krishna, managing director, KITS, Chama E, general manager, KITS, Yohann Samuel, representative of IFCCI were present.

Le Drian, who arrived on an official trip from France earlier in the day, visited the campus of Bangalore Life Sciences Cluster (BLiSc), which comprises the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP) and the Institute of STEM Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (inSTEM). He also visited ISRO’s Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC) where he was welcomed by Dr K Sivan, chairman of ISRO, and Dr S Unnikrishnan Nair, director of HSFC.

Broad deliverables in the MoU:

• Mutual industry facilitation - Joint venture opportunities and industry collaborations to explore potential market opportunities, when a company from one side wants to collaborate with the industry from the other side.
• Mutual increase in awareness of innovation and startup ecosystems of both Karnataka and France.
• Facilitate the collaboration with Start-Up incubators and accelerators from Karnataka and France.
• Mutual invitation to events/workshops/seminars etc., being conducted on a regular basis, to exchange ideas and latest developments.
• Communicate positive impacts of the collaboration between the two parties via press and social media.
• Providing an opportunity for interaction among industry and government leaders in the digital and technology space.
• Be the contact window to assist companies from another side to find proper cooperation agencies in the local area.
• Facilitating industry engagement between Karnataka Government and French tech-focused MNCs in Karnataka. Virtual interaction session with interested French MNCs will be organized.