India and Germany consider sustainable development as the overall goal of a development policy. Both sides agree that environmental management is an important area in the framework of bilateral development cooperation.

Advisory Services in Environmental Management (ASEM) is a joint programme of the Indian Ministry of Environment and Forests and the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ) focusing on urban and industrial environmental management. Set up in August 2002, ASEM constitutes a new phase of the Indo-German development cooperation.

The joint approach is set up since ASEM believes that sustainable environmental improvement can only be achieved through the joint efforts of the Indian Government and people of India.

ASEM supports and coordinates projects that focus on eliminating or reducing urban and industrial pollution and hence improve living conditions. The aim is to provide environmentally, economically, and socially viable solutions which create winning situations for all involved parties. To achieve this, ASEM provides technical and, as appropriate, financial support.