Annual Report 2004 - Profil - Max-Planck-Gesellschaft

P OLITICAL G UIDELINESCOOPERATION ABROADPartnership with India“One in ten at Harvard is an Indian” was emblazoned on the cover of MANAGER MAGAZINEin May 2004, charting a shift in perspective that has been visible in the media, politics, andbusiness. India is showing the world a new face – that of a country with huge economic andscientific potential. This also makes it an attractive partner for the Max Planck Society. Infall 2004 the President of the Max Planck Society thus signed a memorandum of understandingtogether with a representative of the Indian government, forming the basis forfuture scientific cooperation.Currently Max Planck researchers are cooperatingwith Indian partners in 13 projects,and a further three are planned. In 2002around 300 Indian visiting scientists wereworking at Max Planck institutes, and 63PhD students were conducting research atthe International Max Planck ResearchSchools, with India thus constituting themajority of foreign PhD students. Between1998 and 2002 alone, the percentage ofIndians among all foreign PhD studentsfinanced by funds for the support of juniorscientists rose from 2.2 to 11.0 percent.Since the ratification of the agreement inNew Delhi by Secretary of State V.S. Ramamurthyand Max Planck President PeterGruss in the presence of the German ChancellorGerhard Schröder, the Max PlanckSociety’s cooperation with India has takenon a brand new quality: by establishing upto 15 fellowships, it will be funding fouryearvisits to its institutes by postdoctoralIndian junior scientists. Links with the MaxPlanck Society will also be strengthened byestablishment of partner groups at Indianresearch institutions. These groups will beheaded by Indian researchers who haveworked as guest scientists at a Max Planckinstitute and have since returned to theirhome institutions.Interest is focused on the three big Indianresearch centers: the Indian Institute ofScience and the National Center for BiologicalSciences, both located in Bangalore,as well as the Indian Institute of Technologyin Delhi. Even though India has alreadybeen able to present major research findingsin areas such as biotechnology andenvironmental and health research, thecountry is primarily of interest as a longtermpartner – these institutions are hometo a large number of ambitious young scientistswith excellent training. If the MaxPlanck Society succeeds in kindling theirinterest in Germany, both sides are set tobenefit as a result. Harvard will hopefullynot remain the only attractive location forIndia’s up-and-coming scientists.President Peter Gruss and Secretaryof State V. S. Ramamurthysigning the agreement in the presenceof the German ChancellorGerhard Schröder and the IndianMinister of Science Kapil Sibal13