Kolkata, Aug. 31 -- India and Russia need to build on decades of trust and defence cooperation by expanding their partnership into reliable trade, joint technology development and industrial production, speakers said at the SAMPARK-India-Russia Bilateral Conclave in Kolkata on Monday.
Tea, technology and defence sector representatives said the relationship now faces practical challenges ranging from shipping and certification to converting technological cooperation into commercially viable projects.
Arunita Phukan Yadav, Executive Director of the Tea Board of India's North East Zonal Office, said changing business conditions had created hurdles for Indian tea exporters. She cited difficulties in sending samples, disrupted shipping routes and higher insurance and compliance costs since 2024.
"Logistics, certification process, customs procedure, insurance, payment system and market access everything has to be looked into," Yadav said, adding that the International North-South Transport Corridor could provide a more efficient route.
She also called for greater business-to-business engagement between exporters and Russian buyers.
Debjit Chakraborty, CEO and Executive Director of the Indo-Russian Innopraktika Technology Hub, said future cooperation should focus on "a partnership of equals", with joint development rather than one-way technology transfers. He called for closer links among industries, universities and research institutions, along with pilot projects to test technologies in Indian conditions.
Retired Col. R.K. Srivastava said defence ties should move beyond equipment purchases towards technology, training, maintenance, manufacturing and research. "Technology transfer, in fact, is the real strength of this relationship," he said.
He said the next phase should connect the two countries' research and industrial ecosystems and support jointly developed products that can compete internationally.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.