India and China will commemorate in 2008 the 70th anniversary of the arrival of revered Indian doctor Dwarkanath Kotnis in China in an effort to inspire future generations of the two countries to work for the needy.

Dwarkanath Kotnis Memorial Joint Medical Mission is planned for 2008 in which 10 doctors each from India and China will participate to serve the people of both the countries, Indian Ambassador Nirupama Rao said at the commemorative function on the 65th death anniversary of Dr Kotnis.

The Indian doctor had joined the medical mission to China where he served for four years before his death in December in 1942.

"This is just a beginning, but the idea has enormous possibilities. The image of the youth of the two countries recreating the pioneering and valiant spirit of Dr Kotnis will inspire future generations of young Indians and Chinese to work for the cause of those in need," Rao said.

The Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations will be the nodal agencies for the joint medical mission, she said at the event organised by Hebei People's Provincial government at the Bethune International Peace Hospital at Shijiazhuang, where Kotnis served as head of the mission.

Rao said the Indian Embassy in Beijing [Images] will also organise various events in 2008 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the arrival of the Indian Medical Mission to China.