France has set a target to invite 30,000 students from India by 2030. President Emmanuel Macron made the announcement nearly a month after Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Paris as chief guest of France's National Day. After the announcement, French embassy in India rolled out a number of measures, including a five-year short-stay Schengen visa to attract more Indian students. The initiatives are part of people-to-people ties envisioned as one of the three pillars of strategic partnership between the two countries during PM Modi's visit.
The embassy also said that France will create "international classes" - a specialised programme that will provide comprehensive training in the French language and other academic disciplines for the benefit of students.
"Our teams are working double time to implement the decisions taken by President Macron and Prime minister Modi in Paris to benefit students. France has always been an inclusive and diverse country, eager to share our rich cultural heritage and world-class education opportunities with Indian students. My message for Indian students: France will always be your friend, and we will do everything possible to ensure you have an amazing academic and life experience in our country," said Emmanuel Lenain, Ambassador of France to India.
The French embassy will also hold education fair in four Indian cities - Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai - in the month of October.
Representatives of more than 40 French higher education institutions will be present at the fair to help Indian students and their parents choose the right course, the embassy said in a statement.
