Embassy of India

Prague

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Economic and Commercial Relations between India and the Czech Republic

1. Trade ties between India and the Czech Republic, formerly Czechoslovakia, preceded India's independence. Czechoslovakia established its consulate in Mumbai in October 1920 and in Calcutta in December 1929.

2. The famous Czech shoe company Bata, which started its operations in Batanagar (West Bengal) in the 1930s, is one of the most popular Czech brands in India. While Škoda is currently a well-known Czech brand in the automotive industry, Czech Jawa and Yezdi motorcycles were also popular in the 1960s. Due to this popularity, Indian car giants Mahindra and Mahindra have successfully revived the Jawa brand. Jawa motorcycles made in India are exported to the Czech Republic.

3. During the communist era, Czech companies launched a number of important industrial projects in India in the fields of energy, metallurgy, machine tools, and transport; by 1990, they had approximately 60 large projects in India. Some of these Czech companies continue to work on projects in the heavy engineering sector in India.A Czech Industrial Cluster has been set up in Bengaluru in December 2018 to facilitate trade and investment.

4. The Czech policy of trade diversification outside the EU has given new impetus to Indo-Czech bilateral trade and economic relations. New mechanisms and diversified interaction thereafter resulted in the revival of bilateral trade. Bilateral trade has reached at US $ 4.034  billion in 2025, from just US $ 86 million in 1993 as per Czech statistics. In 2024, India’s export to the Czech Republic was US$ 3.060 billion while India’s import from the Czech Republic was US $ 1.126 billion. Bilateral trade during the last five years has been as follows:

(Source :Cross-border movements of goods by countries. Czech Statistical office)

Main Indian products exported to the Czech Republic:

1.Smartphones for wireless networks

2.Medicaments consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therapeutic or prophylactic purposes, put up in measured doses "incl. those in the form of transdermal administration" or in forms or packings for retail sale, n.e.s.

3.Machines for the reception, conversion and transmission or regeneration of voice, images or other data, incl. switching and routing apparatus (excl. telephone sets, telephones for cellular networks or for other wireless networks)

4.Medicaments containing corticosteroid hormones, their derivatives or structural analogues but not antibiotics, put up in measured doses "incl. those in the form of transdermal administration" or in forms or packings for retail sale

5.Spring, air or gas guns and pistols, truncheons and other non-firearms (excl. swords, cutlasses, bayonettes and similar arms of heading 9307)

Main Czech products imported to India:

1.Reciprocating positive displacement pumps for liquids, power-driven (excl. those of subheading 8413.11 and 8413,19, fuel, lubricating or cooling medium pumps for internal combustion piston engine and concrete pumps)

2.Gear boxes and parts thereof, for tractors, motor vehicles for the transport of 10+ persons, motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons and goods and special purpose motor vehicles, n.e.s.

3.Fuel, lubricating or cooling medium pumps for internal combustion piston engine

4.Parts suitable for use solely or principally with spark-ignition internal combustion piston engine, n.e.s.

5.Spark-ignition reciprocating piston engine, of a kind used for vehicles of chapter 87, of a cylinder capacity > 1.000 cm?

5. Institutional cooperation

a) Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation: The bilateral economic relations gained momentum after the Czech Republic gained entry into the European Union in 2004. With the entry of CR into EU, it was necessary to re-negotiate the bilateral trade agreement, so that it became compliant with EU regulations. India-Czech Joint Economic Committee (JEC) provides the institutional framework for intergovernmental discussions on economic cooperation before 2010. A Bilateral Economic Agreement was signed during the visit of Vice President in June 2010, following which, India-Czech Joint Economic Committee (JEC) was upgraded to a Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation (JCEC). The 12th session of JCEC was held on 05 Dec 2023 in New Delhi. Shri Jitin Prasada, Minister of State for Commerce & Industry co-chaired the 13th Session of the India–Czechia Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation (JCEC) with his Czech counterpart Mr Jan Sechter, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic in Prague on 23rd April 2026. On the margins of the visit, the Minister inaugurated in the India–Czech Business Forum with Mr Jan Sechter, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade and engaged with leading Czech industry representatives to promote trade and investment opportunities and further strengthen business-to-business linkages.

b) JWG for Heavy Engineering: During the 9th meeting of the Joint Economic Commission in 2012, both parties agreed to reactivate the JWG Joint Working Group on Heavy Engineering. The first meeting of the JWG took place in Mumbai on 15 March 2013 and the JWG has met regularly since then. The 6th JWG Heavy Engineering Meeting was held in Brno in October 2019 as part of the International Engineering Fair in Brno. Currently, a proposal to replace  Heavy Enginnering with Innovative Industries is under discussion.

Bilateral investments:

6. Indian companies in CR in sectors such as IT, vehicles, tea, textile, pharmaceutical and auto-components. Major Indian companies such as Infosys BPO, LEEL Coils Europe s.r.o., Tata Global Beverages Czech Republic a.s., MSSL Advanced Polymers s.r.o., Varroc Lighting Systems s.r.o., Pricol Wiping Systems Czech s.r.o., Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Distribution s.r.o., Mileta Horice a.s., Apag Electronik s.r.o., Coffee Day cz a.s., DINA-HITEX spol. s r.o. have made investments in CR. As per Czech invest, Indian investments in Czechia surpass US$160 million from 15 companies, generating over 3,000 jobs across sectors such as IT, life sciences, and industrial manufacturing. Prominent Indian firms like Infosys, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, and Tata Consultancy Services have established a strong foothold. The acquisition of Vítkovice Steel by Jindal Steel International in 2025 exemplifies India's strategic investments, aiming to enhance steel production with technology upgrades and environmental sustainability.

7. Czech Companies in India: Czech Industrial Cluster has been set up in Bengaluru in December, 2018 to facilitate trade and investment. Over 37 Czech companies, including Škoda Auto, Doosan Škoda Power, and Bonatrans, operate in India with investments exceeding US$283 million, focusing on automotive, engineering, and infrastructure sectors. A notable joint venture was launched in July 2025 between Tata AutoComp and the Škoda Group for urban and high-speed rail components, contributing to India’s flagship Vande Bharat project.

8. A 37-member delegation from the FICCI FLO led by National President Ms. Poonam Sharma visited the Czech Republic to explore business opportunities between India and Czech Republic from 3-4 September 2025.

9. The Indian Pavilion at the MSV International Engineering Fair in October 2025 in Brno set up in coordination with the Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC INDIA). 23 Indian companies showcased their cutting-edge technologies and engineering excellence across diverse sectors from precision tools and advanced machinery to automation solutions and industrial components.

10. Czech company, Škoda Doosan Power participated in the Bharat Electric Summit 2026, held from 19-22 March 2026 at Yashobhoomi, Dwarka, New Delhi.  On 25 March 2026, Mr. Petr Novotný, CEO and Executive Board Chairman of Škoda Group, met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The meeting emphasized opportunities for collaboration in transportation and advanced technologies, signaling new avenues for Czech companies to expand into one of the world’s most dynamic markets.

Commercial Representative:

Dr. Prakash Shelat

First Secretary

Tel: +420 272 701 025,  +420 257 107 018

E-mail:  fspol.prague@mea.gov.in, com2.prague@mea.gov.in 

https://www.investindia.gov.in/

April 2026