Assam CM highlights state’s emergence as gateway to ASEAN, invites global industry to invest

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday invited the global business community to explore investment opportunities in Assam, highlighting the State’s strategic location, improving connectivity, expanding infrastructure, growing economy, skilled human resources and investor-friendly institutional framework.

Addressing the second edition of the ICC Global Business Summit in the national capital, the Chief Minister said the rapidly changing global economic and technological landscape presents India with a significant opportunity to diversify production, strengthen supply chains and deepen its integration with global value chains.

“The next phase of India’s growth will depend on bringing more regions and enterprises into international and global value chains. India’s next growth journey will emerge from the East and the Northeast. Our Prime Minister is calling this the time for Purvodaya,” he said.


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The Chief Minister said Assam was strategically positioned at the crossroads of South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia, sharing international borders with Bhutan and Bangladesh and serving as a natural gateway to the ASEAN region.

He said the sustained focus of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on connectivity, infrastructure and development of the Northeast had transformed 'Assam’s geography from a perceived constraint into a strategic advantage and brought the State from the periphery to the centre stage of India’s development trajectory'.

“Today, with stronger linkages to national and international markets, Assam is steadily emerging as a hub of connectivity, enterprise and opportunity,” he said.

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Assam’s economy expanding

Highlighting the State’s economic growth, Sarma said Assam’s nominal GSDP was estimated at Rs 7.45 lakh crore in 2025-26, with real growth of over 10 per cent, and was projected to reach Rs 8.71 lakh crore in 2026-27. The industrial sector is estimated to account for 35.64 per cent of the State’s GSDP at current prices in 2025-26.

He said the figures reflected a broader economic transformation, with the State’s economic base expanding, investment capacity strengthening and new opportunities emerging for enterprise and employment.

The Chief Minister also referred to a recent Reserve Bank of India report which, he said, recognised Assam as the fastest-growing economy in the country.

Connectivity driving growth

Sarma said connectivity remained central to Assam’s growth strategy, with the State developing a multimodal network integrating highways, railways, inland waterways, aviation and logistics infrastructure.

The Multimodal Logistics Park at Jogighopa, expansion of the Pandu and Dhubri terminals, and development of the Brahmaputra as a navigable economic corridor are part of this effort, he said.

The State now has seven operational airports, with further expansion underway. The new terminal at Guwahati airport has been designed to handle approximately 13 million passengers annually.

“These investments are reducing the cost of distance and creating new possibilities for manufacturing, logistics, tourism, services and regional trade,” the Chief Minister said.

5.18 lakh crore investment commitments

Sarma said Assam’s focus was not merely on attracting investment commitments but on converting them into projects on the ground.

Referring to Advantage Assam 2.0 – Infrastructure and Investment Summit, he said the State received investment commitments of Rs 5.18 lakh crore, of which projects worth around Rs 3.5 lakh crore had been converted into investments on the ground within a year. Some of these projects, he added, had already become operational.

He further said that since May 2021, more than 3,700 new factories had been registered in Assam, representing approximately 1.11 lakh factory workers.

“Our focus is to sustain this momentum and ensure that investments translate into deeper economic activity,” he said.

The Chief Minister said Assam was strengthening its business environment through single-window clearances, sector-specific policies, industrial land banks and dedicated industrial infrastructure. The single-window clearance system, he said, had facilitated more than 2.5 million approvals.

Senior nodal officers have also been appointed to coordinate across departments and resolve investor issues within stipulated timelines, he added.

Semiconductor ecosystem offers new opportunities

Sarma highlighted the emergence of advanced manufacturing as an important component of Assam’s industrial transition.

He said Tata Electronics’ Rs 27,000-crore semiconductor assembly and test facility was expected to be commissioned in December this year. The facility is expected to produce up to 48 million chips a day and generate more than 27,000 direct and indirect employment opportunities.

He said Assam wanted to develop a wider industrial ecosystem around the semiconductor facility, including packaging and testing equipment, precision components, industrial gases, clean-room services, maintenance, logistics, quality testing and specialised engineering services.

The Chief Minister also highlighted opportunities in downstream industries linked to Assam’s existing strengths in oil, gas and petrochemicals, including fabrication, industrial equipment, speciality chemicals, petrochemical derivatives, bio-refining and low-carbon manufacturing.

Focus on clean energy

Sarma said Assam was preparing for the energy transition and targeting 6,000 MW of renewable energy capacity by 2030.

The State is also developing opportunities in green hydrogen and bamboo-based second-generation ethanol, creating scope for investment in renewable power, energy storage, bioenergy, energy efficiency and related manufacturing.

He said these initiatives could help create greater value from Assam’s natural and agricultural resources while supporting industrial diversification.

Young population, skills and healthcare

The Chief Minister said Assam’s young population, with a median age of approximately 22 years, was a significant human-resource advantage.

The State is strengthening its education and skills ecosystem through institutions in technology, engineering, management and vocational training. He cited IIT Guwahati, NIT Silchar and Assam Skill University, along with the State’s network of technical institutions, as important platforms for connecting young people with emerging economic opportunities.

Sarma also stressed the importance of foreign-language learning to prepare Assam’s youth for emerging international employment opportunities.

Healthcare, he said, was another emerging sector, with opportunities in diagnostics, medical devices, telemedicine, nursing, paramedical training and medical tourism. With AIIMS Guwahati and an expanding healthcare ecosystem, Guwahati could develop into a healthcare hub for the region and neighbouring areas, he said.

Tourism, agriculture and tea

The Chief Minister said Assam’s cultural and natural assets could support a broader tourism economy.

With three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, seven National Parks, the Brahmaputra, around 800 tea gardens and a rich cultural and spiritual heritage, Assam offers opportunities in hotels, resorts, wellness, convention facilities, destination management and river tourism.

He said the next phase would be to deepen the economic value generated by growing tourist arrivals.

Similarly, agriculture and tea offer opportunities for higher-value processing, packaging, traceability, branding and exports, enabling producers to access larger markets.

Referring to Assam’s emerging tea exports, Sarma said the State had recently exported a consignment of matcha tea to Japan, adding that the effort was aimed at creating new international markets for Assam’s products.

The Chief Minister emphasised that Assam’s development would require partnerships among government, industry, universities, research institutions and entrepreneurs.

“Government can create infrastructure, institutions and policy framework. Industry brings technology, management and market access. Investment brings capital and long-term commitment. Universities and research institutions create knowledge,” he said.

“When these capabilities come together, investment can create much more than individual projects. It can create an ecosystem in which businesses grow, skills develop, supply chains deepen, local capacities develop, employment is created and innovation grows with Assam,” he added.

Sarma said Assam’s proposition was based on a growing economy, improving infrastructure, access to wider markets, natural resources, human capital and an administration committed to supporting investors throughout the project lifecycle.

‘Team Assam is ready to work 24x7’

Inviting investors to visit Assam and assess its industrial opportunities, the Chief Minister assured the business community of the State government’s continued support.

“Once you decide to come to Assam, you can access us 24 hours. A Chief Minister or a Chief Secretary or both, or Team Assam, will respond to you even if it is midnight, 2 am or 4 am — anytime within five minutes,” he said.

He invited industries and enterprises to test the State’s responsiveness and assured them of cooperation and assistance in implementing credible projects and building productive capacity.

“As India deepens its engagement with South Asia, Assam is ready to contribute as an important gateway to the East. We want the State to become a platform through which the Northeast connects more deeply with India and through which India strengthens its economic engagement with the wider ASEAN region,” Sarma said.

He concluded by inviting the business community to partner with Assam in building a State that is more connected, more productive and more deeply integrated with India’s growth story.