Shri Sanjay Kumar, Secretary, (DoSEL), Ministry of Education, flagged off a group of 47 enthusiastic and excited school children, who have been invited to participate in Sakura Programme 2024 from India along with 5 countries (Indonesia, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau and Peru) from 10^th-16^th November 2024. The ceremony at CIET-NCERT, New Delhi, was organised by DoSEL and was attended by Prof. Dinesh Prasad Saklani, Director, NCERT; Smt. Archana Sharma Awasthi, Joint Secretary, DoSEL; Mr. Kemmochi Yukio, Manager, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Japan; Dr. Amarendra Prasad Behera, Joint Director, CIET-NCERT; and officials from DoSEL.

In this group, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) has invited 47 school students and 4 supervisors. These 47 students (18 boys and 29 girls) are from Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya and Government Schools of Telangana, Jharkhand, Sikkim, Chandigarh, Kerala, Manipur, Meghalaya, Haryana, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra and Kendriya Vidyalayas.

To develop the intellectual horizon and scientific exploration among young learners, the JST has been implementing the “Japan-Asia Youth Exchange Program in Science” also known as the “Sakura Science Programme” since 2014. India was added to the Sakura Program in 2015. The students are invited under the programme for short-term visits to Japan, giving them the opportunity to experience Japan’s cutting-edge science and technology as well as its culture.

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, while emphasizing the importance of curriculum and pedagogy in schools, endorses that "Learning should be Holistic, Integrated, Enjoyable and Engaging in itself. Also, NEP-2020 states that in all stages, experiential learning will be adopted as standard pedagogy within each subject and with explorations of relations among different subjects. It is in this context that educational trips and excursions to various places of importance in terms of historical, cultural, social and technological development are of paramount importance. Japan, as a developed nation, a friendly country, along with technological advancements, is also a favourite destination for educational exposure. Therefore, visiting a country like Japan is always enriching and provides an opportunity to explore innovative practices.

India participated in the program for the first time in April 2016. So far, 572 students along with 87 supervisors have visited Japan under this programme. The last batch visited Japan in October 2024.

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