Mission of Czech businesses from the railway industry in India
18.05.2015 / 05:24 | Aktualizováno: 23.01.2017 / 09:12
Business mission comprising of Czech companies active in the railway industry visited in India between May 11 and 14, 2015. This business event was organized as a project of economic diplomacy financed by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs and participants had the opportunity to meet with the representatives of Indian key companies doing business in transportation sector such as Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, Research Design and Standards Organization, Lucknow and Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala Furthermore, Czech businessmen had the opportunity to exchange their views on mutual cooperation with the Union Minister of Railways S. Prabhu, with representatives of the Railway Board and they also attended a business forum organized in collaboration with the chambers of commerce PHD and ASSOCHAM. The business mission was organized as one of the concrete steps towards the fulfillment of the Memorandum of Understanding between Czech Railways and the Association of Czech Railway Industry (ACRI) on one side and the Indian Railways which was signed in New Delhi on August 19, 2014.
On August 19, 2014, a Memorandum of Understanding between Czech Railways and the Association of Czech Railway Industry (ACRI) and the Indian Railways was signed in New Delhi . The Memorandum has been concluded for three years with an automatic extension of validity of one year unless one of the parties denounces its validity.
The contents of the Memorandum is mainly focused on the cooperation in the field of passenger and freight rail transportation, building infrastructure, modernization of railways in order to achieve faster transport, modernization of signaling equipment, exchange of information and communication technologies particularly in passenger transport and in other areas suggests by one of the parties. On the basis of the Memorandum was later on implemented a project of economic diplomacy named "Presentation of Czech companies from the railway industry in India" that was organized in May 2015.
The business mission was a great chance for the participants to meet with both government officials (with the Minister of Railways and Railway Board representatives, which is the executive body of the Ministry of Railways, and representatives RDSO - Research Design and Standards Organization) and with business representatives of the Indian railway industry.
That mission was organized under the patronage of ACRI (Association of Czech Railway Industry) and was attended by CEO of ACRI Marie Vopálenská. The delegation was led by M. Stašek, Czech Ambassador to India, who accompanied the participants at all meetings. Mission participants were besides ACRI representatives of Bonatrans, Skoda Transportation, Skoda Electric, CzechTrade and through catalog participation in the mission also participated in the company DAKO, Pars Components and VÚKV (Research Institute of Rail Vehicles). In the mission moreover participated representatives IWET company which operates in the field of water management, however, it is also interested inthe railway transport, and representatives of its Indian partner PME. Furthermore, the mission also included representatives of the Indian company TECHNIP ENGINEERING which represents Czech company Bonatrans on the Indian market.
The next step for defining specific possibilities for closer cooperation in the railway industry between the Czech and Indian side is the upcoming visit of members of the Steering Committee in Prague that is scheduled for the second half of June 2015.
Modernization of railways is an issue of major importance in nowadays India. In recent years, India has launched a gigantic project of building investment corridors between the cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Cenajo, the core of which is the modernization of railway lines between those cities, and Czech companies should not miss this occasion.
