Clueless? The crowd at the foundation stone-laying ceremony in Dibrugarh on Monday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Lepetkata, April 9: The foundation stone of the much-touted gas cracker project was laid here today, but the Bimal Kakotis and the Daya Karmakars do not have the foggiest idea as to what the fuss was all about.

In fact, Tengakhat, the original project site, and Lepetkata are not far from each other, geographically at least, and both are located in Dibrugarh district.

The gas cracker project has been hanging fire in this area for years, with these two nondescript villages the focal point of attention throughout the region. But residents are still clueless as to the actual nature of the project.

“Gas cracker mane gas ulabo sage (Perhaps it will produce gas),” mused Bimal Kakoti, an elderly villager of Lepetkata Kakotigaon, hardly a kilometre away from the project site.

On the other hand, Daya Karmakar of Lepetkata Bongaligaon said someone told him plastic buckets would be manufactured at this project. “I simply don’t understand why such a big project is required just to manufacture buckets... these buckets are easily available in the market at cheap prices,” he observed.

Renu Bora, an elderly woman at the site, asked this reporter what would actually be produced here. “I have seen tea garden factories. But such a big project site? I simply cannot imagine it!” she said.

For the uninitiated, the gas cracker project will produce various grades of polythene such as injection moulding, roto moulding, extrusion and blow moulding for end-use applications like buckets, toys, woven bags, pipes, water tanks and carry bags.

The project would also produce random copolymer and impact copolymer to cover an entire range of applications such as furniture, houseware, automotive goods, packaging craters and tarpaulins.

The project would also spawn nearly 500 downstream industries spread over entire Upper Assam.

The main base of such ancillary units would be set up in Tinsukia district, where 500 acres of land have been selected for the purpose.

But many are seeking to make hay while the sun shi-nes. Bhaskar Sharma, a youth of Dibrugarh town, has already started looking for a plot of land near the national highway close to the project site.

“A good dhaba (restaurant) would definitely do good business: after all, at least 600 employees are working in the projec,” he said.

Pabitra Phukon, a transporter who operates five vehicles running with the Indian Oil Corporation, said he would try and buy more vehicles which he can hire out to the gas cracker project.