This project was launched in fiscal 2005 to enhance the bilateral relationship between India and Japan by inviting young Indian parliamentarians to hold direct dialogues with policymakers and representatives of the financial and industrial sectors in Japan.
In July 2006, a bipartisan delegation of four Indian parliamentarians visited Japan. They paid courtesy calls on then-Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe and former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, and had discussions with Toshiaki Kitamura, Vice-Minister for International Affairs, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Diet members from the ruling and opposition parties, and representatives of economic organizations. In November, four more parliamentarians representing both leading as well as opposition parties in the Indian parliament visited Japan for one week. They paid courtesy calls on Yasuhisa Shiozaki, Chief Cabinet Secretary, Hidenao Nakagawa, Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan, and Katsuhito Asano, Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, and had discussions with members from the ruling and opposition parties and people involved in the financial sector.
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the grant recipient, publicized these two visits via its newsletter and website. In December 2006, the past participants in this program joined in a conference organized by the CII, entitled "Indo-Japan Relations: A New Paradigm Shift," and emphasized Japan's importance to India to an audience mainly from India's industrial sector.
For the betterment of project outcomes, Professor Aftab Seth of Keio University (former Indian Ambassador to Japan), project advisor, expanded the network of interested parties among VIPs in Japan and India in order to solicit further understanding and cooperation for the program this year.