India, Maldives sign six agreements in different sectors

April 11, 2016

India and Maldives have signed six agreements in different sectors to boost bilateral relations between both maritime neighbouring countries.
These agreements were inked after comprehensive talks between visiting Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.
The bilateral agreements were signed in the fields of avoidance of double taxation, conservation and restoration of ancient mosque, tourism and defence.
Agreements signed are

Agreement for Avoidance of Double Taxation of income derived from International Air Transport.
Agreement for the Exchange of Information with respect to Taxes: It envisages mutual assistance for exchange of information concerning taxes relevant to the administration and enforcement of the domestic.
It also includes exchange of information relevant to the assessment, determination and collection of such taxes, the recovery and enforcement of tax claims, or the investigation and prosecution of tax matters.
Agreement related to Orbit Frequency Coordination of South Asia Satellite (SAS) proposed at 48oE: It will be used for operation of SAS for the purpose of performing intersystem orbit-frequency coordination.
It will be also used for fulfilling ITU level regulatory requirements and obtaining international level protection/recognition for the SAS.
MoU for Cooperation in the area of conservation and restoration of ancient mosques in Maldives: Detailed proposals for such restoration projects will be developed by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and Department of Heritage, Maldives.
MoU on cooperation in the field of Tourism: It calls for expansion of bilateral cooperation and exchange of information and data related to tourism.
It also seeks to encourage cooperation between tourism stakeholders including Hotels and Tour Operators and investment in the Tourism and Hospitality sectors and establish exchange programmes for cooperation in Human Resource Development etc.
Action Plan for Defence Cooperation: It is an important component of the India-Maldives bilateral relationship and the shared strategic and security interests of the two countries in the IOR (Indian Ocean region).
It envisages an institutional mechanism to further bilateral defence cooperation at the level of the Defence Secretaries.