Event report
Overview
| Date & Time | 15 November 2025 (Saturday) 9:45–18:15 (India Standard Time) |
|---|---|
| Venue | Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad |
| Organizer | Japan Science and Technology Agency Sakura Science Program Headquarters |
Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) Sakura Science Program Headquarters held the 4th Japan-India Universities Forum on November 15, 2025 at Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH). The year 2025 marks the 40th anniversary of the formalization of the India-Japan Science and Technology Cooperation and has been designated as the India-Japan Year of Science, Technology and Innovation Exchange. This celebratory year is expected to promote mutually complementary cooperations that maximise both countries’ strengths in the fields of advanced technology and innovation, while accelerating the co-creation of new values.
Therefore, the Fourth Japan-India Universities Forum was held with the aim of further enhancing the momentum for Japan-India collaboration that has been significantly fostered through previous forums, while also promoting concrete initiatives between Japanese and Indian institutions. This forum was also conducted as part of “Japan Month 2025,” organized by the Embassy of Japan in India.
The forum was attended by 214 participants, with 145 from Japanese institutions and 69 from Indian institutions. We were honored by the presence of H.E. Mr. Keiichi Ono, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to India, and received a video message from H.E. Mr. Yohei Matsumoto, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan.
At the Opening Ceremony, the President of JST stated that, based on last year’s trial, the LOTUS Programme has officially commenced this fiscal year, and that its scale will be further expanded in the future. The distinguished guests expressed their expectations for future Japan-India human resource exchanges, and representatives from each university conveyed their commitment to actively contribute toward expanding the scope of these exchanges.
Discussions were held in line with the following themes and fields, and overall, participants emphasized the importance of continuous and close collaboration at all levels—from institutional leadership to researchers on the ground—as well as the need for support mechanisms such as internships and career pathways that look beyond joint research. The forum also served as an opportunity for Indian institutions to reaffirm the frameworks for collaboration, including the LOTUS Programme and initiatives of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
- (1) For universities and institutions to promote India-Japan collaboration of research in advanced fields.
<Biotechnology / Material Science / AI & ICT / Energy / Quantum & Information Science> - (2) For universities leveraging regional strengths of research and innovation capabilities to promote India-Japan collaboration.
- (3) For universities to promote India-Japan collaboration for developing human resources and enhancing the career-paths in collaboration with municipalities.
At the same time, participants discussed the need for more concrete programs that go beyond these existing frameworks. Several participating universities expressed interest in exploring student exchange programs that build upon existing MOUs, as well as potential Double Degree and Joint Degree initiatives.
Program
Theme：Accelerating Japan-India Talent Circulation in science and technology collaboration
| Opening Ceremony 9 : 45 – 11 : 00 |
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| *** Networking lunch 11 : 15 – 12 : 45 *** |
| Round-table Meetings 13 : 00 – 15 : 00 |
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Ten Round-table Meetings were held simultaneously.
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| *** Short break 15 : 00 – 15 : 30 *** |
| Bilateral Meetings 15 : 30 – 18 : 15 |
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Participants (titles omitted)
India
| Birla Institute of Technology And Science (BITS) Pilani | Dean, Admission and Student Financial Aid | Ajit Pratap Singh |
| Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Allahabad | Director | Mukul Sutaone |
| Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing (IIITDM) Jabalpur | Director | Bhartendu K. Singh |
| Indian Institute of Science (IISc) | Chair, Office of International Relations | Ramray Bhat |
| Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Bhopal | Director | Gobardhan Das |
| Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata | Dean Administration | Mohit Prasad |
| Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Mohali | Dean, International Relations | Indranil Banerjee |
| Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Pune | Dean International Relation Office | Arnab Mukherjee |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay | Director | Shireesh B Kedare |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi | Dean, International Relations | Anil Verma |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Gandhinagar | Director | Rajat Moona |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati | Director | Devendra Jalihal |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad | Director | Budaraju Srinivasa Murty |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur | Director | Manindra Agarwal |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur | Director | Suman Chakraborty |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras | Dean, Global Engagement | Raghunathan Rengaswamy |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi | Head of IR | Satinder Kumar Sharma |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee | Dean, Sponsored Research & Industrial Consultancy | Vivek K. Malik |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar | Director | Rajeev Ahuja |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Tirupati | Dean, Global Engagement, Alumuni and Corporate Relations | Sasidhar Gumma |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-BHU) Varanasi | Prof in International Relations | Santosh K Singh |
| Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Delhi | Director | Ranjan Bose |
| Manipal Academy of Higher Education | Pro Vice Chanchellor | Madhu Veeraraghavan |
| National Institute of Technology (NIT) Calicut | Director | Prasad Krishna |
| National Institute of Technology (NIT) Puducherry | Professor | Madappa V. R. Sivasubramanian |
| National Institute of Technology (NIT) Warangal | Director | Bidyadhar Subudhi |
| Nitte Mahalinga Adyanthaya Memorial (NMAM) Institute of Technology | Vice Principal | Nagesh Prabhu |
| Nitte University | Vice Chancellor | M. S. Moodithaya |
| Savitribai Phule Pune University | Vice Chancellor | Suresh Gosavi |
| SRM Institute of Science and Technology | Vice Chancellor | Muthamizhchelvan C |
| Swami Rama Himalayan University | Vice Chancellor | Rajendra Dobhal |
| University of Hyderabad | Vice Chancellor | Basuthkar J Rao |
| Vellore Institute of Technology | Assistant Director | J Naga Venkata Raghuram |
| Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST) | Director | Akash Deep |
| International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI) | Director | R. Vijay |
| Asa Bhanu Technical Services Limited | *Observer | |
| KPMG | *Observer |
Japan
| Hokkaido University | Executive Vice President, Chief International Officer | TAKAHASHI Aya |
| Tohoku University | Executive Vice President | UEKI Toshiya |
| University of Tsukuba | President | NAGATA Kyosuke |
| The University of Tokyo | Executive Vice President | HAYASHI Kaori |
| Institute of Science Tokyo | President and Chief Executive Officer | OHTAKE Naoto |
| Nagoya University | President | SUGIYAMA Naoshi |
| Kyoto University | Executive Vice-President | SAWARAGI Tetsuo |
| The University of Osaka | Executive Vice President | HAYASHI Mikako |
| Kyushu University | Executive Vice President | IWATA Kenji |
| Keio University | Vice-President | TSUCHIYA Motohiro |
| Ibaraki University | Executive Director | KIKUCHI Ashina |
| Saitama University | Vice-President | ICHIHASHI Hideo |
| Chiba University | Executive Vice President | OZAWA Hiroaki |
| Ochanomizu University | Trustee and Vice President | ISHII-KUNTZ Masako |
| The University of Electro-Communications | Vice President | MASAMOTO Kazuto |
| Nagaoka University of Technology | Vice President | MIYASHITA Yukio |
| Niigata University | President | USHIKI Tatsuo |
| Kanazawa University | Vice President | HASEBE Noriko |
| Gifu University | Advisor of the President, Executive Director GU-GLOCAL | KOYAMA Hiroyuki |
| Nagoya Institute of Technology | Executive Director, Vice President | IDO Yasushi |
| Shizuoka University | Trustee, Vice-President | FUTAMATA Hiroyuki |
| Kobe University | Executive Vice President | TAMAKI Hisashi |
| Shimane University | President | OTANI Hiroki |
| Okayama University | President | NASU Yasutomo |
| Hiroshima University | Executive Vice President | MIYAZAKI Seiichi |
| Ehime University | Special Aide to the President, Associate Director | SUMIDA Manabu |
| Kyushu Institute of Technology (Kyutech) | President | MITANI Yasunori |
| Nagasaki University | Trustee | YASUTAKE Atsuko |
| Kumamoto University | President | OGAWA Hisao |
| Shibaura Institute of Technology | Director, International Programs Center | KIMURA Masaomi |
| Sophia University | Fr. Chancellor | AUGUSTINE Sali |
| Tokyo City University | President | YASHIRO Tomonari |
| Tokyo University of Science | Vice President | KOGO Yasuo |
| Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology | Vice-President | OHTSU Naoko |
| National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) | President | HONO Kazuhiro |
| Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) | Executive Vice President | NOZAKI Kyoko |
| National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology (QST) | President | KOYASU Shigeo |
| The Association for Overseas Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Partnership (AOTS) | Representative, New Delhi Office | IYADOMI Rika |
| Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) | Senior Vice Presidet | HARA Shohei |
| Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) | JSPS Bangkok Office, Director | OTANI Yoshio |
| Indian JSPS Alumni Association | Chairman | D.Sakthi Kumar |
| Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) | Executive Vice President | OKUMURA Akiko |
| Shimadzu Corporation | Coporate Officer, General Manager, International Sales Dept. | TAJIMA Wataru |
| Suzuki Motor Corporation | Councilor, Global Marketing | SAITO Kinji |
| TDK Coporation | Manager, Recruiting Section, HR CoE, Japan HR Division | TANABE Tsuyoshi |
| JEOL Ltd. | Special Advisor for Management Strategy | WATANABE Shinichi |
| Japan Analytical Instruments Manufacturer's Association (JAIMA) | Managing Director | YOSHIDA Hideto |
| Fujitsu Limited | Managing Director, Fujitsu Research of India Private Limited (FRIPL) | TOYODA Ken |
| Horiba,Ltd. | Senior Corporate Officer (head office), President (HORIBA India) | Rajeev Gautam |
| Asian Development Bank, ADB | *Observer | |
| NEDO India | *Observer |
