India-Russia pacts set to boost jobs, skills and infra

New Delhi: The agreements signed at the India-Russia Annual Summit on mobility of the Indian workforce - including skilled workers - and on maritime cooperation are expected to meaningfully contribute to job creation, skills development, and India's maritime infrastructure.

According to officials, the two Migration and Mobility pacts establish a framework for the movement of skilled Indian workers to Russia and are designed to promote safe, orderly and mutually beneficial migration. ET was the first to report that India and Russia would sign a mobility pact during President Vladimir Putin's visit for the annual summit.

With a declining population, Russia is looking to expand the intake of Indian workers. Indians are already employed in sectors such as construction and textiles, but Russian industries are increasingly seeking skilled manpower in machinery and electronics, people familiar with the matter said. A growing Indian diaspora could become a key pillar of the bilateral partnership in the coming years, an expert on Russian affairs noted.


Briefing reporters on Friday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said: "Indian skilled workers, especially in IT, construction and engineering, will help meet Russia's labour needs and deepen our bilateral cooperation. There is increasing interest among Russian businesses and industries to hire skilled manpower from India to support growing economic activities in Russia."

The maritime cooperation pacts are also expected to boost infrastructure-building. One MoU enables training of Indian seafarers in polar waters through programmes designed and facilitated by Russian agencies specialising in this domain.

Another MoU covers cooperation across shipping, ports, joint mineral exploration, and R&D. ET had earlier reported that maritime pact would be a key focus at the annual summit.