Chinese Ambassador to India Xu Feihong encouraged youths to increase exchanges as cultural ambassadors while interacting with a group of Indian students who won scholarships to pursue higher studies at various Chinese universities.

At a function held at the Chinese embassy in New Delhi on Aug 20, Xu said that China and India are both at a critical stage of national development and revitalization, and that they enjoy broad common interests and the space for cooperation.

Addressing the students who received scholarships for higher studies in China, the envoy said that as major developing and emerging economies, with ancient civilizations, China and India should adhere to mutual respect, understanding, trust and mutual accomplishment.

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Indian students studying in various Chinese colleges and universities are cultural ambassadors. They can expedite people-to-people interaction, and cultural and academic exchanges between the two countries, Xu said.  

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, there were over 23,000 Indian students at Chinese universities, Xu said, adding that he hopes the number would again increase gradually.

Around 65 Indian students were awarded scholarships by the Chinese government to pursue higher studies at various Chinese universities. They have great opportunities to study in China and get to know the country better, as Chinese colleges and universities are welcoming Indian students.

"Delighted to meet Chinese Government Scholarship winners from India. The door of China is open to you all. Hope you will indulge yourselves in Chinese language, culture and society and become friendship ambassadors between China and India," Xu later wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as twitter.

Monika Kumari, a female student from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi, said that after pursuing a one-year Chinese language course in China she will opt for higher studies, on international relations, at a Chinese university.

Higher studies in a Chinese university will help her to find a lucrative job in India as well as China, and proficiency in Chinese language will boost her career prospects, said the student, who has completed her PhD at JNU.  

Another student, Priyanshu Yadav, who graduated in Chinese language from Doon University in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand, will pursue one-year language course at Tsinghua University in Beijing beginning next month. After that, he will opt for MBA in a Chinese university.

Proficiency in Chinese language with an MBA degree from a Chinese university can be a double bonanza, Yadav said.

Chinese language interpreters are in high demand across numerous Indian government agencies and businesses, he added.

Amit Ranjan Alok, who is pursuing PhD in Chinese studies at JNU, will go to China to pursue a one-year language course at Beijing Language & Culture University. After completing the language course, he plans to return to India to complete his PhD.

Proficiency in Chinese language will give him deep insight into Chinese culture, society and politics, and will help him in his goal of becoming an expert on India-China relations, he added.

Chinese universities offer scholarships for students pursuing higher studies in various subjects. The cost of living in some Chinese cities is much lower when compared to countries like the US, the UK, and continental European nations, said Khushboo Yadav, a student from India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh. She will join a three-year post-graduation program in Chinese literature at the Beijing-based Capital Normal University.

Congratulating the Indian students, B R. Deepak, professor of Chinese Studies at the Centre of Chinese and Southeast Asian Studies, JNU, said the youth are stepping into a new journey to fulfill their dreams.

The professor said he is hopeful that bilateral relations between the countries will improve soon. Indian students studying in China should explore the cultural similarities between the countries, as both countries have rich cultural civilization, said Deepak, who attended the event at the Chinese embassy.

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Last year V. Muraleedharan, India’s then junior minister of external affairs, said in the Indian parliament that approximately 10,000 Indian students were pursuing higher education in China.

Meanwhile at a separate event in India earlier this month, Kong Xianhua, the Chinese Consul General in Mumbai, said Indian students can act as envoys and bridges for cooperation and exchanges between China and India, and make the Chinese dream and the Indian dream come true together.

Speaking on Aug 10 in Mumbai at degree certificates award event organized by the Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, University of Mumbai, Kong told the graduating students: “I hope you can apply the knowledge you have learned in this college into the vigorous national construction, actively participate in the cause of China-India friendship and cooperation, continue the friendship between the two countries.”

The writer is a freelance journalist for China Daily. Xinhua contributed to this report.