Delhi University’s North Campus on Saturday was host to a 100-strong youth delegation from China during a two-hour stop at the university.
“Both our populations are big and if both of us walk head-to-head and shoulder-to-shoulder, we will make a great difference to the world,” said a member of the delegation.
Interacting with the help of translators, volunteers from the National Service Scheme spread across the university’s colleges were present, as were students simply interested in everything Chinese.
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“I take a special Mandarin class in addition to my other classes. I am enjoying hearing the delegation speak, though my Mandarin is not good enough to understand everything they say. There are many others like me, Mandarin is the hot thing these days for foreign language students,” said Kannika, a student of Daulat Ram College.
The rapt audience at the conference centre were treated to Kathak and Bharatanatyam by the Indian students and poetry reading and ballet by the Chinese delegation.
A presentation on NSS activities by director Aarti Saxena prompted the Chinese delegation to speak about the volunteering services of the youth in their country. “The poetry reading was planned but the ballet was impromptu,” she admitted.
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The delegation is here on an invitation by the Youth Affairs and Sports Ministry and is part of an effort to improve bilateral relations between the countries.
The youth delegation exchange programme has been running between the two countries for the past eight years.