New Delhi: India and the UK are to work towards doubling bilateral trade in five years, the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, said here on Thursday.

At a meeting with the visiting British Prime Minister, Mr David Cameron, here the two countries also decided to constitute an India-UK Infrastructure Group to strengthen cooperation, apart from plans to set up a high-level India-UK CEOs Forum.

Addressing a joint press conference, Dr Singh said the two sides had agreed on specific initiatives in the areas of economy and trade, science and technology, energy, education, defence, culture and people to people contacts.

“Building upon past experience, we have also agreed to launch a new phase of the UK-India Education and Research Initiative. We will intensify bilateral exchanges at all levels… India and the United Kingdom are natural partners to shape a better world,” he said.

Mr Cameron said that the visit has been a success in intensifying cooperation in three key areas, namely galvanising trade relations, reinforcing security efforts and increasing people-to-people contact.

A joint statement issued at the conclusion of the official talks adds that the two sides also welcomed the new opportunities that had opened in cooperation in the civil nuclear power sector, following the signature earlier this year of the UK-India Civil Nuclear Co-operation Declaration. This has created opportunities for wide ranging cooperation in the nuclear field including in nuclear trade and exchanges between scientific institutions, the statement said.

The two Prime Minister's also expressed their strong support for the conclusion of a broad-based Trade and Investment Agreement between India and the European Union by the end of this year.

The delegations discussed an MoU between the two countries to enhance investment in the road sector and the two sides “looked forward to its early finalisation.”

Both sides also agreed to explore initiatives that will create resources and incentives to help business deploy renewable energy.