Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed confidence that the state will have “a lot of reasons to smile” ahead of the “Advantage Assam 2” summit in Guwahati on February 25-26.

His optimism follows Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget announcement of a urea plant in Assam with an annual capacity of 12.7 million metric tonnes.

Sarma took to X on Sunday to reveal: “Ahead of #AdvantageAssam2, several game-changing decisions will be made. The announcement of an urea unit is one such decision. The Assam Government is working to supplement the overall efforts of the central government. #DoubleEngine”.

The chief minister had earlier said that the state government was “working hand in hand” with the centre and that he was sure there will be a series of announcements, “at least five or six announcements in run-up to the Advantage Assam conclave”.

“I am sure that both on the investment and infrastructure count, Assam will have a lot of reasons to smile,” Sarma said while praising the efforts of the “double engine government” to usher in development.

A railway track and a six-lane highway between Bongaigaon in Assam with Gelephu in Bhutan are expected to be announced before the summit.

Sarma is hoping that the upcoming investment summit would propel Assam into a key destination for growth and innovation.

The state government has pulled all stops to make it a success with chief minister himself holding road shows and meetings in Bhutan, South Korea, Japan and Mumbai to invite industry leaders. Similarly, state ministers Ashok Singhal, Bimal Borah and Chandra Mohan Patwary have held road shows in Calcutta and London to woo investors.

The mega event will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while Sitharaman is likely to attend the valedictory session.

In his reaction to the announcement on the urea plant to be set up inNamrup in Dibrugarh district, Sarma had said that it was a “long-pending demand of the people of Assam” and “after the semiconductor plant in Jagiroad, this urea facility will be a game-changer for the entire Northeast” by helping Assam “achieve self sufficiency in fertiliser availability, better channelise our natural gas resources.”

Secretary general, the Tea Association of India, PK Bhattacharjee, in a statement said that the proposed plant “is expected to mitigate the urea requirement of the tea industry”.

However, not many shared Sarma’s enthusiasm or welcomed the development with cautious optimism.

Urea plant ‘worry’

Tileswar Borah, the adviser to the Namrup Fertiliser Shramik Union, said that they were happy with the budget announcement on the urea plant and thanked Union minister Sarbananda Sonowal, chief minister Sarma and local MLA Taranga Gogoi for the development.

However, they “still feel that we (they) should wait for the fine print on how and when the project will be implemented. We should wait for the foundation-laying ceremony before celebrating. “

Borah retired from the loss-making Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizer Corporation Ltd (BVFCL) in the upper Assam town of Namrup in 2020, but is still advocating for a replacement urea plant, first raised in 2005.

The BVFCL was formed in 2002 by hiving it from the Namrup Unit of Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited, the first unit of which started production in 1969 but two of its three units are non-operational and the third one is struggling.

Ranjan Chowdhary, the state secretary of the All India Trade Union Congress, shared Borah’s sentiments. “Budget announcement is welcome but the Centre has to show its commitment by making the proposal operational. This is because of the highs and lows associated with the demand for a new fertiliser plant or its upgrade,” Chowdhary said.

The Opposition Assam Jatiya Parishad’s topbrass Lurinjyoti Gogoi and Jagadish Bhuyan pointed out it was “unclear” whether Sitharaman’s proposal “refers to the previously announced fourth unit or an entirely new proposal.

“Moreover, no specific budgetary allocation has been mentioned, raising doubts about the seriousness of the claim,” the duo said in a joint statement.