500 Chinese youth delegation to visit India on Feb 25

Beijing, Feb 14: Five hundred Chinese youth would be flooding New Delhi streets on February 25, the biggest ever from China, as part of a new initiative to improve people to people contact between the two countries.

"It will perhaps be the biggest Chinese delegation to visit to India. The arrangements are underway", Deputy Ambassador of India to China, Rahul Chhabra told PTI here. The visit is being organised by the two countries as part of new initiative to improve people to people contracts between the two nations.

The Chinese will be converging at New Delhi from different parts of China on a nine-day visit to India. They will later split into four different groups and branch out to Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkatta and Rajastan.

The delegation is a reciprocal visit to 500 Indian youth delegation which visited China last year during which Chinese Prime Wen Jiabao hosted them at the Great Hall of People. After his speech Wen skipped the protocol and freely interacted with the Indian delegation amid blaring Bollywood music. Some Indian delegates even managed to put Paggidis and Nehru caps on him.

It was likely that the Chinese delegates too would be hosted by top Indian leadership. Arrangements are underway, Indian officials said. The exchange of delegation was part of efforts by both the countries to improve peoples to people contacts between the two countries.

The Chinese delegates picked from different provinces and associations would be hosted by NSS, Nehru Yuva Kendra, Sports Authority of India and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation ltd.

PTI