India and Russia on Friday signed two pacts on movement of workers, one aimed at curbing illegal immigration and the other at facilitating labour mobility.

The first pact, ‘Cooperation in Combating Irregular Migration’, comes in the shadow of several Indian citizens losing their lives on the battlefield after signing up for the Russian Army.

The other agreement, ‘Temporary Labour Activity of Citizens of one State in the Territory of the other State’, will enable the temporary migration of skilled Indian workers to labour-intensive sectors in Russia, including construction, agriculture and IT-enabled services.

Although no details were provided on a timeline for the pact or on the number of Indians who would be sent to Russia, sources said that as many as 70,000 skilled and semi-skilled I

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