"It is time for you to invest and contribute to help develop Bihar," Modi said in his inaugural address here.

Modi said Bihar was poised to be a developed state and was on the verge of a turnaround.

Nearly 200 delegates, including over a dozen NRIs from Bihar, are attending the conclave to discuss the challenges facing Bihar.

Many delegates expressed their desire to contribute to accelerating the pace of socio-economic changes in Bihar.

The conclave is being organised by news portal bihartimes.com.

"We are expecting to see the participation of various people from Bihar who have proven themselves in various fields. It will be a meeting platform for the best minds from government, politics, business, art, film, activism and academia to think about change in Bihar," bihartimes.com chief executive officer Ajay Kumar told IANS.

Kumar said a Japanese delegation was also attending the event.

Makoto Kato from the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology said he wished to work for the development of Bihar and planned to survey Gaya district for projects like underground dam construction, underground water preservation and water supply to farmers during summers.

Katsuhiko Kurosawa, a researcher from the Seikei University, said he was interested in developing arid lands of the state through the development of an appropriate eco-technological approach.

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