Guwahati: Ambassador of Japan to India Kunihiko Kawazo and Political Counselor Kentaro Orita expressed their deep satisfaction and appreciated the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) fraternity for holding an extremely productive bilateral discussion on wide ranging issues like academic and cultural collaboration in near future.
A meeting was held between visiting Japanese delegation and NEHU community of teachers and students under the aegis of the newly established Office of International Affairs (OIA) of NEHU and ICSSR-NERC, said a statement.
The visiting Japanese dignitaries were presented with NEHU’s achievements for last half a decade and the visiting team appreciated NEHU’s strategic location and its contribution to larger field of knowledge.
Ambassador Kawazo in his speech called upon the NEHU fraternity to strengthen the existing Indo-Japan relationship.
He referred to multilateral agreements that have been currently arrived at in the discussion between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Kishida Fumio.
Kawazo referred to India’s close partnership with Japan in areas like Science and Technology, Trade, and also in the area of people to people relations.
Appreciating the natural surroundings of NEHU and its infrastructure, he compared NEHU against the urban landscape of University of Tokyo of which he is a noted Alumnus.
He pointed out at length possibility of NEHU’s collaborative work with Japan foundation which is tasked with dissemination of Japanese language and culture.
The diplomat exhorted NEHU for its enthusiasm to teach Japanese language and culture and exuded a lot of confidence in vibrant, dynamic and impactful members of NEHU fraternity in achieving higher goals of learning and research in the areas Japanese language, literature and culture.
Political counselor Kentaro Orita explained his natural affinity to NEHU by exclaiming amidst loud applause his desire to become a student here in NEHU.
The counselor further stated the professed objective of Japan’s deep seated interest in the geo strategic importance of India’s North-east and related it to NEHU’s unique socio-cultural and educational eco-system.
NEHU’s role in uplifting the region towards a pan-Asiatic and global spread of advanced level of intellectual contributions is underscored by the counselor.
He emphasized people to people relations between Japan and Northeast India that has acquired a new dimension in terms of act east policy.
Going by Japan’s role in act east policy, he projected the possibility of closer ties between academic institutions, university/industry collaboration through Japan and in the overall the possibility of larger investment by Japan for the benefit of people of North-east India.