Date:08/12/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/12/08/stories/2004120812291400.htm

National

Israel proposes IT partnership

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, DEC. 7. The Vice Prime Minister of Israel, Ehud Olmert, who is in India on a five-day visit, proposed here today a broad collaboration with Karnataka in information technology (IT) and biotechnology.

This will boost collaboration between Indian technology companies based in Bangalore and those in Israel. Indian IT services companies, for instance, already do business with strong product firms in Israel.

Mr. Olmert, who is accompanied by Eli Opper, head of Israel's Office of Chief Scientist, said: "We should create a broad framework of agreement for business cooperation between Karnataka and Israel." The Office of the Chief Scientist is an important government policymaking and funding body in the fields of scientific research and technology, with a strong focus on commercialisation of new technologies.

Willing to sign pact

Mr. Opper told The Hindu that an Israeli delegation of businessmen and government officials led by Mr. Olmert visited Infosys Technologies, Wipro and Kness Technologies, an Israeli company with operations here. "We can do a lot of business," Mr. Olmert said, by bringing together "creative and innovative minds in Bangalore with their counterparts in Israel."

The Industries Minister, P.G.R Sindhia, told presspersons later that the State was willing to sign such an agreement with the consent of the Centre.

Venture fund

Mr. Opper said a proposal by Israel to set up an Indo-Israeli hi-tech venture fund was still being examined. The proposal entailed both countries to contribute a few million dollars initially to the fund, which would be used to promote partnerships between private companies in Israel and India.