New Delhi: The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India and the European Commission (EC) will jointly fund certain India-EU collaborative projects under Horizon 2020 also known as H2020.
H2020 is the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme ever with nearly €80 billion of funding available over 7 years (2014 to 2020). It is widely open to foreign participation, in particular of Indian teams, for which DBT co-funding is available in respect of specific calls for proposals.
Indian researchers, enterprises (MSMEs), research institutions and universities will be able to team up with their European partners to participate in projects under H2020 and make best use of Europe’s excellent opportunities in research and innovation. Through participation in H2020, beneficiaries can gain great benefits from access to excellent knowledge, access to research data and access and connection to world-leading scientific networks and research teams.
Co-Funding mechanism for research and innovation cooperation
While Indian participants are no longer automatically funded by the EC under H2020, the DBT and the EC have agreed to set up a co-funding mechanism to support joint projects between European and Indian universities, research institutions and companies. Under this co-funding mechanism (CFM), a maximum of three crore rupees (₹ 30,000,000) per project will be made available by DBT to successful Indian participants in joint collaborative projects with European partners under Horizon 2020. The CFM will be used for certain pre-identified Horizon 2020 calls for proposals.
Several priority areas will be supported under the programme include agriculture (including food), biotechnologies, bio-energy, health, water resources, new materials and nanotechnology. In addition to the topics eligible for DBT funding under the CFM, Indian participation is welcomed in all Calls for Proposals of Horizon 2020, where Indian partners can participate on their own funds, or by using other sources of funding.
