◆We have signed an academic exchange agreement with Maharanapratap University of Horticulture (Republic of India)
Release Date:
On Friday, February 21, 2025, we signed an academic exchange agreement with Mahalan Prapatt University of Horticulture (Republic of India).
Maharana Pratap University of Horticulture is a horticultural university located in the state of Haryana in northern India. While Haryana is known as one of India’s leading breadbaskets, the risk of groundwater depletion has increased in recent years due to the modernization and expansion of agriculture, creating a need to shift toward the cultivation of horticultural crops that have a lower environmental impact.The university was established in 2020 with the aim of promoting education and research in the horticultural sector within the state.
Our collaboration with the university began in July 2023, when the Minister of Agriculture and the Director General of Horticulture of Haryana, along with other officials, visited our university to inspect our Internet of Plant (IoP) initiatives. Maharana Pratap University of Horticulture expressed interest in conducting a joint project on variety development and IoP, and we agreed to proceed with this collaboration as part of the JICA yen loan project, “Haryana Sustainable Horticultural Agriculture Promotion Project.”
The signing ceremony for the agreement, held at a facility of the Government of Haryana, was attended by President Hiroyuki Utsuda and Deputy Director of the IoP Co-creation Center Ishizuka from our university, and from the Republic of India, by Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, Haryana Minister of Agriculture Shyam Singh Rana,as well as President Malhotra and Faculty Goyal from Maharanapratap University of Horticulture. Also in attendance were Masami Ota, First Secretary at the Embassy of Japan in India, and three representatives from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) India Office.
At the ceremony held that day, following remarks by the Chief Minister of Haryana and the state’s Minister of Agriculture, the two universities signed an academic exchange agreement and exchanged commemorative gifts.
In addition, on the following day, the 22nd, a delegation from our university, led by the president, was invited to Maharana Pratap University of Horticulture. After touring the campus facilities, researchers from both universities—including the presidents—engaged in a lively exchange of views regarding future academic exchanges between the two institutions.
With the signing of this agreement, we look forward to further promoting exchanges between the two universities.
(center right in the photo)
A look at the visit to Mahalanapratap University of Horticulture