VELLORE: Call it foresight, coincidence or just a rural school’s response to global changes. An elementary school in a remote corner of the district has introduced Japanese language to its students. The Garden of Peace school at the Gandhi-King-Mandela Farm at Kurumbapalayam village near Kaniyambadi has become the first school in the State where the language has been introduced by the acting Consul General of Japan in Chennai, Takayuki Kitagawa on Thursday.Honorary Chairperson of the school, Dr Ramu Manivannan, described the move as part of a global vision towards building universal brotherhood. Beyond the cultural fusion, the Japanese diplomat explained that the school has grabbed the opportunity to expose students to new trends. “This is important since Japan has a strong bilateral relationship with India. Also, TN is focused on developing strong infrastructure for the Chennai-Bangalore business corridor,” he stated. According to Kitagawa, the region will see new highways and cargo ways, with bullet trains possibly connecting the district with other industrial hubs. This will induce Japanese companies to set up shop here, creating employment opportunities for the locals. “The students of this school will be able to tap into opportunities that such a situation will throw open,” he added. Recalling the support lent by the Indian Government when the Tohoku region of Japan was hit by an earthquake last year, Kitagawa noted that India has always stood by Japan during difficult times. He also recalled how the elephant ‘Indira’ was sent to Japan soon after the Second World War to provide hope and comfort to Japanese children facing post-war devastation.“It is our turn to return the support,” he said, emphasising that the inauguration of the Japanese language initiative for underprivileged students will open up new horizons for both sides. M R Ranganthan, Special Advisor to Tamil Nadu Chamber of Nippon India Trade and Industry, who is coordinating the programme and who was present on the occasion, noted that video conferencing technology will be used to teach the language from experts in Chennai and Bangalore. Some teachers from the school will also be trained in the language simultaneously. Parents can also enroll for the course free of cost.Suma, a banker-turned teacher from Bangalore who has volunteered to teach Japanese at the school, began her lesson with a song that students sang with ease in the first go itself. The school has around 150 kids from nearby villages studying in classes I to V.
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