Economic relations between

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

date back to the Middle Ages. People in both countries have always been interested in learning more about the history, language and culture of the other country. During the years after India's independence, Czechoslovakia also played a role as a vital economic partner. Today, both India and Czech Republic have established close relations when it comes to trade, investment and tourism.

History

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

(now a land that is part of the Czech Republic) traded extensively with India for unique and valuable goods such as spices. These Indian spices were transported into the then Czechoslovakia, through both land and sea routes. It is also interesting to note that

Charles University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , undergr ...

, the oldest and the largest university in the Czech Republic, was home to a great number of Sanskrit scholars. During the next few centuries, India-Czech Republic relations strengthened further as many artists, businessmen, scholars and political leaders travelled between the two countries. After returning from their visit to India, many Czech scholars would spread knowledge about Indian culture and heritage to the Czech people. Additionally, many notable Indian scholars and writers visited Prague as well as other cities in Czechoslovakia. These visits increased Czech people's knowledge of India and facilitated in forming connections between the two countries. The increase in the amount of bilateral trade led to the establishment of even more personal connections. For example, in 1920, a Czechoslovak Consulate was set up in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

, India and a few more years later a Czechoslovak Consulate was set up in

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

as well. These consulates paved a way for people with similar professional and personal interests from both countries to come together and interact. India has possessed trade relations with Czechoslovakia since before India's independence. Even in the 1930s, Bata had more than a 100 Czechoslovak employees in Calcutta, India. During the years after India's independence, Czechoslovakia set up a great number of major projects in India in fields such as

energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

defence Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

and

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...

. However, after the creation of the Czech Republic on January 1, 1993, trade declined due to the liquidation of some major state-owned corporations in the Czech Republic and the switch to payments being made in freely convertible currencies. Diplomatic relations between the two countries were first formally established on November 18, 1947, after which many former Indian presidents and prime ministers paid frequent visits to Czechoslovakia. Many high-profile visits have taken place after the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution ( cs, Sametová revoluce) or Gentle Revolution ( sk, Nežná revolúcia) was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations agains ...

and the establishment of Czech Republic and

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

. In February 1994, former Czech President

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and former dissident. Havel served as the last president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1992 and then as ...

visited India, where he received two prestigious awards: the

Indira Gandhi Peace Prize __NOTOC__ Indira may refer to: People * Indira (name) Films and books * ''Indira'', an 1873 novella by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee * ''Indira'' (film), directed by Suhasini Manirathnam * ''Indira'' (1989 film), a Hindi film (Hema malini as Indir ...

and the Mahatma Gandhi Peace Prize. In October 1998, the two countries signed a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement. In June 2010, the

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

of India,

Mohammad Hamid Ansari Mohammad Hamid Ansari (; born 1 April 1937) is an Indian politician and retired Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer who was the 12th vice president of India from 2007 to 2017. Ansari joined the IFS in 1961. In a diplomatic career spanning 3 ...

, visited the Czech Republic and a Social Security Agreement as well as an Agreement on Economic Cooperation between the two countries were signed. The following is a list of some of the important agreements signed between India and Czech Republic: *1966: Agreement on the use of

nuclear energy Nuclear energy may refer to: *Nuclear power, the use of sustained nuclear fission or nuclear fusion to generate heat and electricity * Nuclear binding energy, the energy needed to fuse or split a nucleus of an atom *Nuclear potential energy ...

for peaceful purposes *1973: Agreement on scientific, technical and industrial cooperation *1978: Agreement on cooperation in sea transportation *1993: Trade Agreement between the Government of the Czech Republic and the Government of the Republic of India *1998: Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPPA) *1999: Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) *2003: Agreement on Defence Cooperation between the Government of the Czech Republic and the Government of the Republic of India *2010: Agreement on Economic Cooperation between the Government of the Czech Republic and the Government of the Republic of India Both India and Czech Republic are equally interested in being educated about the history and culture of the other country. Czech people are passionate about

yoga Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...

Ayurveda Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repo ...

and Indian religious texts. Many universities in the Czech Republic have a long history of offering education about Indian culture, languages, literature and history. Similarly, in the

Delhi University Delhi University (DU), formally the University of Delhi, is a collegiate university, collegiate Central university (India), central university located in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1922 by an Act of the Central Legislative Assembly and ...

in India, students can learn Czech language and history, and are increasingly eager to visit Czech Republic to explore the architecture, history and beauty.

Trade and Investment

For many decades, Czechoslovakia was one of India's main trading partners among other the East-European countries. Many Czech companies have contributed in developing India's industrial future by delivering the necessary equipment required for the power and

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

industries and sectors. Even in today's world, the Czech Republic is very often associated in India with famous Czech companies like

Skoda Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to: Czech brands and enterprises * Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav ** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...

, Tatra, Bata and

Zetor Zetor (since January 1, 2007, officially Zetor Tractors a.s.) is a Czech agricultural machinery manufacturer. It was founded in 1946. The company is based in Brno, Czech Republic. Since June 29, 2002, the only shareholder has been a Slovak com ...

. The

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

and

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...

sectors are some of the most favourable areas of future cooperation between India and Czech Republic. Sectors such as petrochemicals, food processing and civil aviation are also reported to be areas where both countries can benefit from each other. From 2012 onwards, bilateral trade between India and Czech Republic has amounted to about more than a billion U.S. dollars. In 2017, the bilateral trade turnover was 1466 million U.S. dollars. Czech companies mainly export cars, machinery energy facilities and turbines to India, while Indian companies mainly export electrical machinery, iron and steel, cotton and organic chemicals to Czech Republic. Furthermore, Indian companies like

Infosys Infosys Limited is an Indian Multinational corporation, multinational information technology company that provides business consulting, information technology and outsourcing services. The company was founded in Pune and is headquartered in Ba ...

Ashok Leyland Ashok Leyland is an Indian multinational automotive manufacturer, headquartered in Chennai. It is owned by the Hinduja Group. It was founded in 1948 as Ashok Motors and became Ashok Leyland in the year 1955. Ashok Leyland is the second-most ...

and

Tata Tea Tata Consumer Products is an Indian fast-moving consumer goods company and a part of the Tata Group. Its registered office is located in Kolkata while its corporate headquarters is in Mumbai. It is the world's second-largest manufacturer and d ...

have also invested in sectors of the Czech Republic such as IT, vehicles, textile, and tea. Inspired by the investment activities of companies such as

Škoda Auto Škoda Auto a.s. (), often shortened to Škoda, is a Czech automobile manufacturer established in 1925 as the successor to Laurin & Klement and headquartered in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic. Škoda Works became state owned in 1948. After 199 ...

and Tatra in India, a number of other prospective Czech companies are considering investment projects in India in sectors like transportation, power, defence and machinery. An important sector of bilateral trade cooperation between the two countries is the automotive industry.

Skoda Auto Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to: Czech brands and enterprises * Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav ** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...

is flourishing in India with its widespread productions of Skoda cars as well as a collection of 106 outlets, 69 dealerships and 67 service centres across the country. In 2017, Škoda Auto sold 17,438 units in India. In July 2018, Czech vehicle manufacturer Tatra was reported to be stepping into a partnership along with Reliance Defence in order to build military trucks for India. The company's engagement in building goods for the Indian defence industry is another activity that highlights the strengthening of economic relations between India and Czech Republic. By far, one of the biggest successes of a Czech company in India is that of Bata as it possesses an extensive sales network across the entire country. It was reported that the company expects India to serve as its most important market by the end of 2018. At the end of December 2017, Bata India reported a 6.2 per cent rise in its net sales.

Czech Investment in India

The Indian market has established itself as a key destination for many Czech brands and companies. Czech companies work to establish themselves in the Indian market by offering high-quality products to local consumers. Czech companies are mainly emerging as investors in the fields of energy, finance, engineering and infrastructure. The following is a list of some important Czech companies that have invested in India: *

: A premium automobile manufacturer in India. *

Skoda Power Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to: Czech brands and enterprises * Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav ** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...

: The company supplies a large number of power blocks to India. * Bata Limited: Leading footwear manufacturer *Vítkovice Machinery Group: A leading industrial group *ZKL Bearings CZ: Produces railway bearings *Bonatrans: Production of railway and metro wheels *Linet: Production of hospital beds and mattresses. *FANS: Production of cooling towers * Tatra: Manufactures trucks for defence purposes.

Indian Investment in Czech Republic

Many Indian companies, too, have established themselves in the Czech Republic due to the skilled Czech labour and comparatively low wages. The following is a list of some important Indian companies that have invested in Czech Republic: *

: Established an IT facility in Brno *

ArcelorMittal ArcelorMittal S.A. is a Luxembourgian multinational steel manufacturing corporation headquartered in Luxembourg City. It was formed in 2006 from the takeover and merger of Arcelor by Indian-owned Mittal Steel. ArcelorMittal is the second larg ...

: Investment in steel plants in Czech Republic *

(Hinduja Group): Production of trucks *

Alok Industries Alok Industries Ltd, is an Indian Textile manufacturing company based in Mumbai, India. with integration in both the streams, in cotton as well as polyester value chain. ISO 9001:2000 certified company. The company has created global sized capa ...

: Manufactures textile material. * Motherson Sumi Systems Limited: Leading automative manufacturer *Fedders Electric and Engineering: Produces industrial heat exchangers and industrial coils.

Tourism

Tourism between India and Czech Republic has also been considerably increasing in the past few years. Over the last decade, many of Prague’s historical sites have served as shooting locations for a number of big-budget

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

films. This has played a role in generating a great amount of interest in the Czech Republic among the people in India and, thus, led to an increase in the number of Indian tourists choosing to travel to Prague. Over the last three years, the number of tourists in the Czech Republic from India has increases to 150 per cent. In 2017, the Czech Republic received 85,680 Indian tourists and it is expecting to receive more than 100,000 tourists from India by the year 2020.

Future Relations

On October 22, 2018 and October 23, 2018, the eleventh session of India – Czech Republic Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation (JCEC) took place. During this, the two countries agreed to work to improve bilateral economic relations. It was agreed that a strong partnership could be formed between India's growth and Czech technological and

manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...

expertise and skill. This relationship had the potential to be mutually beneficial to both countries. Other important issues were also discussed in detail at the JCEC, such as the issuance of long-term student

visa Visa most commonly refers to: *Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company ** Visa Debit card issued by the above company ** Visa Electron, a debit card ** Visa Plus, an interbank network *Travel visa, a document that allows ...

s and the strengthening of the

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

and

investment Investment is the dedication of money to purchase of an asset to attain an increase in value over a period of time. Investment requires a sacrifice of some present asset, such as time, money, or effort. In finance, the purpose of investing i ...

relationship between the two countries. At the same time in Prague, a technical meeting of the eleventh session of the India-Czech Republic JEC was also held. During this, the

Czech government The Government of the Czech Republic ( cz, Vláda České republiky) exercises executive power in the Czech Republic. The members of the government are the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic (Chairman of the Government), the deputy prime min ...

shared that it considers India among the top twelve priority countries when it comes to the improvement of mutual economic, business and investment relationships."India, Czech Republic Agree To Boost Trade Ties". Smetimes.In, 2018, http://www.smetimes.in/smetimes/news/top-stories/2018/Oct/24/india-czech40927.html Furthermore, it was stated that many Czech companies would be interested in cooperating with companies in India.

Resident diplomatic missions

* Czech Republic has an embassy in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

. * India has an embassy in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

. File:Czech embassy Delhi 1029.JPG, Embassy of the Czech Republic in New Delhi File:Indian embassy Prague 4692.jpg, Embassy of India in Prague

References

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