Chandigarh, Dec. 1 -- Ahead of the Progressive Punjab Investors' Summit, scheduled for March next year, chief minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann will embark on a 10-day visit to Japan, starting Monday, to invite business leaders to invest in Punjab. Mann will lead a high-level official delegation to Tokyo and Sapporo, where he will meet with representatives from two leading Japanese companies as well as other potential investors to promote Punjab and encourage their participation in the summit. The CM will be accompanied by industries minister Sanjeev Arora and senior bureaucrats, according to official sources. They said that discussions during the visit will focus on expanding existing industries, introducing new technologies, and attracting fresh investments. The trip is part of the state government's international outreach efforts in the run up to the summit to be held in Mohali from March 13 to 15. The visit follows the CM's deliberations last week with a Japanese delegation comprising representatives of the Embassy of Japan, JETRO, JCCII, and over 25 leading Japanese companies operating across India such as Panasonic, Sumitomo, Nippon, NEC, Toyota and others, during which he batted for strategic tie up with Japan in key sectors of advanced manufacturing, mobility, electronics, food processing, renewable energy, and global services. During the virtual meeting, Mann also extended a warm invitation to Japanese companies to be part of Punjab's next phase of industrial transformation, citing the confidence several leading companies have already placed in the state....