Mayank and Sumana

Siliguri, May 13: For 14-year-old Mayank Vats, an aspiring nano-technology engineer, a visit to a technologically advanced country like Japan is a dream come true.

Mayank, a Class X student of Kendriya Vidyalaya Bagdogra, and his classmate Sumana Mukhopadhyay, are among the 276 students who have been chosen by the Union human resource development ministry for Jenesys, a cultural and educational youth exchange programme.

The Japan International Cooperation Center (JICE), a non-profit organisation which conducts Jenesys, will take the students in three batches. Mayank and Sumana, a trained classical singer who aspires to be a paediatrician, are in the first batch of 93 students who will leave for Japan on May 18.

“The processing started in 2009, when the HRD ministry asked schools to propose names of students (classes XI and XII) for the programme on the basis of educational merit and participation in co-curricular activities. Altogether 2,100 students from all over the country were nominated. All nominated candidates had to fill up a form where we had to mention our academic and co-curricular achievements. Based on that, 276 students were finally selected,” Mayank said.

Jenesys (Japan-East Asia Network of Exchange for Students and Youths), according to the JICE website, is a project proposed by the Japanese government in 2007. It invites youths to Japan mainly from the East Asian member countries every year.

For Sumana, the trip to Japan is an opportunity to spread knowledge about the Indian culture. “While I learn of their culture, I will spread mine too,” she said. “I am also interested in their latest inventions.”

A standard 10-day schedule for the touring students includes a visit to Tokyo and home stays to promote mutual understanding, friendship and trust through first-hand exchanges with local people.

“We had proposed the names of Sumana and Mayank because they are very talented. In the annual exams in 2008, both had scored 99 per cent,” said Shukla Dey, a teacher.