Lucknow, Aug 24 (PTI): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held a meeting with officials of Invest UP and other departments on Monday, and asked them to facilitate investment by Japanese companies and promote tourism in the state.

"For the first time, a delegation of 240 people arrived in the state. This visit created a positive atmosphere between Japan and Uttar Pradesh. The guests who came from Japan appreciated the positive changes taking place in Uttar Pradesh. In such a situation, continuous dialogue between Japan and Uttar Pradesh should be maintained, and youngsters should be connected with employment through investment," Adityanath told the officials.

A 240-member Japanese delegation led by Yamanashi prefecture Governor Kotaro Nagasaki was on a four-day visit to Uttar Pradesh beginning August 20. The visit followed the "UP-Japan Investment Meet 2026" held in Agra, Lucknow and Varanasi.

During the meeting, detailed information was provided to the chief minister about all the agreements signed by the Japanese delegation during its visit. It was informed that the main focus of the visit was on increasing cooperation in investment, manufacturing, green energy, technology, skill development, education and tourism, the Uttar Pradesh government said in a statement.

The chief minister sought information regarding land acquisition for the Japanese City under the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA). Officials informed him that of the 500 acres, more than 350 acres of land has been acquired. The chief minister directed that this work be completed at the earliest.

"A delegation from Uttar Pradesh should also be sent to various global events being held in Japan in September, October and December. Ministers, public representatives, officials, industrialists as well as experts from the fields concerned should be included in this delegation," he said.

He added that programmes for Japanese-language training and skill development should be accelerated. Employment opportunities for youngsters from the state in various regions of Japan, including Yamanashi prefecture, should be strengthened, the chief minister said.

He also said a separate Yamanashi Japan Desk should be created under Invest UP and continuous dialogue should be maintained through this desk. He also directed that its progress report be obtained every third month.

"Good facilities should be provided to the Japanese tourists visiting Buddhist sites in Uttar Pradesh. A route should be developed through which they can visit as many Buddhist sites as possible, including Sarnath, Kushinagar, Shravasti and Kapilvastu, together," Adityanath said.

He directed that special sessions be organised with Japanese experts at an upcoming trade show, so that youngsters can benefit from their experience.

"UNESCO has included Nara in Japan in the World Heritage List, just as it has done with Sarnath. Steps should be taken to establish a cultural connection between the two," the chief minister said.

He also directed that necessary steps be taken to promote bilateral tourism between tour operators of Uttar Pradesh and Japan's Yamanashi prefecture.

Adityanath also said tourism activities in the Buddhist Circuit should be promoted on a large scale.

The artificial intelligence-powered multilingual platform, "Bhashini", played a key role at the UP-Japan Investment Meet by eliminating language barriers and enabling smoother communication between Indian and Japanese investors and stakeholders, the statement said.

As part of a special collaboration between Invest UP, the state's investment-promotion agency, and "Bhashini", the government of India's AI-driven multilingual platform, the technology was successfully deployed during the summit. Real-time speech-to-text transcription and translation between Hindi, English and Japanese helped the delegates from both countries communicate and understand discussions in their preferred languages, the statement said.

Adityanath delivered his address in Hindi at the summit. Through the Bhashini's "Shrutlekh" feature, his speech was transcribed and translated into Japanese in real time, enabling the Japanese delegates to instantly understand his remarks and investment vision.

Similarly, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw's address in English was also translated into Japanese in real time. The technology significantly enhanced communication and engagement among the Indian and Japanese participants throughout the event.

Bhashini's real-time translation capabilities ensured that language did not become a barrier to these discussions, strengthening not only the state's ease-of-doing-business initiatives, but also promoting ease of communication.

The platform enabled the Japanese investors to access information about Uttar Pradesh's investment policies, opportunities and growth potential in their own language.

Operated by the Digital India Bhashini Division (DIBD) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), the "Bhashini" platform currently provides multilingual support to more than 800 government websites.

The platform processes more than 2.4 crore AI interactions daily and has handled more than nine billion (900 crore) AI interactions to date.

"Bhashini" supports 36 Indian written languages, 23 Indian voice languages and 35 international languages, making it a powerful tool for inclusive digital communication, public-service delivery and international engagement, the statement said. PTI NAV RC

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