Speaking at the Advantage Assam event, he described it as a major initiative to connect Assam's potential with global opportunities
Guwahati: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said Assam’s economy has grown to Rs 6 lakh crore during the BJP rule in the state. Asserting that it is the beginning of a new era in the “sacred land” of the Northeast, the Prime Minister said the ‘Advantage Assam 2.0’ investment summit is a great campaign to connect the whole world with the possibilities and progress of the state.
Inaugurating the investment summit in Guwahati, Modi said, “In 2018, the first edition of Advantage Assam was launched. Back then, Assam’s economy was approximately Rs 2.75-lakh crore, now it stands at Rs 6 lakh crore. This means that under the BJP government, Assam’s economy has doubled in six years. This shows the double effect of a double-engine government”.
Lauding the Assam government led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the Prime Minister said, “Today, the land of eastern India and the Northeast is going to start a new future. Advantage Assam is a great campaign to connect the whole world with the potential and progress of Assam”.
History is witness that even earlier, eastern India used to play a big role in the prosperity of the country. Today, when India is moving towards development, once again, eastern India is at the forefront. Our Northeast is going to show its potential,” the Prime Minister added.
“I see Advantage Assam as a representation of this spirit. When I toured Assam in 2013 for an election campaign, I had said that the day is not far when people would read A for Assam,” said the Prime Minister. In his address, Modi also highlighted that a combination of institutional reform, industry, infrastructure and innovation is the basis of India’s progress. “In the last decade, many peace accords have been signed and long-pending border-related issues have been resolved. Every region of Assam, every citizen and every youth is working day and night for the development of the state. We have worked continuously for ease of doing business and we have created a complete ecosystem to promote industry and innovation culture,” he said.
The government is also making a huge investment in the country’s infrastructure. This combination of institutional reform, industry, infrastructure and innovation is the basis of India’s progress, Modi said while adding, “Assam has set a target of taking its economy to $150 billion by 2030. I am confident that Assam can achieve this target”.
The Prime Minister also spoke on the infrastructure related to connectivity and said, “In the last few years, the BJP government has done a lot of work on the infrastructure related to air connectivity. Before 2014, there were only three bridges on the Brahmaputra River, but in the last 10 years, we have built four new bridges, one of which has been named after Bharat Ratna Bhupen Hazarika Ji”.
Assam received an average of Rs 2,100 crore in the railway budget between 2009 and 2014. Our government increased Assam’s railway budget by more than four times to Rs 10,000 crore,” he added.
The Prime Minister further said, “Today, India is making free trade agreements with different regions of the world, due to which our connectivity with east Asia is getting strengthened and the newly formed India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) is also bringing many new possibilities.”
“Amidst the strengthening of global trust in India, today, we all are here in Assam on the land of ‘Maa Kamakhya’,” the Prime Minister said while adding that Assam is emerging as a gateway between Southeast Asia and India.
“To further this potential, the government has launched the North East Transformative Industrialisation Scheme, Unnati,” he said. He urged industry partners to take full advantage of this scheme and Assam’s unlimited potential.
“Assam has always played a role in global trade and over 50 per cent of India’s onshore natural gas production comes from the state. Additionally, Assam’s refinery capacity has significantly increased in recent years,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister also pointed out that Assam is rapidly emerging in sectors such as electronics, semiconductors and green energy. He also highlighted India’s significant leap in electronics and mobile manufacturing over the past decade and expressed a desire to replicate this success in semiconductor production.
“Assam is developing into a key centre for semiconductor manufacturing in India. The recent inauguration of the Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test facility at Jagiroad will promote technological growth in the Northeast,” he said.
Business leaders including N. Chandrasekaran, Sajjan Jindal, Prashant Ruia, Anil Agarwal, and Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty were also present at the summit. High-level delegations from countries including Australia, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Bhutan and Japan also participated.
Additionally, Union ministers S. Jaishankar, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ashwini Vaishnaw, Sarbananda Sonowal and Pabitra Margherita also attended the summit, while Union minister of road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari addressed a session virtually.
