Guwahati, Feb 28: The implementation of the MoUs signed during the Advantage Assam 2.0 business summit will be closely monitored by the departments concerned, and the Industries and Commerce department will soon open a portal to keep close tabs on it, Industries and Commerce Minister Bimal Borah said.

Talking to The Assam Tribune, Borah said that as many as 289 MoUs with financial involvement and 40 others without financial involvement were signed during the summit. He said the agreements without financial involvement mostly include knowledge sharing.

The minister said that if all the MoUs are implemented on time, the face of Assam would change in the days to come.

Borah said a special investment cell has been formed in the Industries and Commerce department. It will coordinate with other departments and statutory bodies like the pollution control board whenever necessary. He said the investors, who invest more than Rs 100 crore and provide employment to at least 200 persons, would get the benefits of a special customised industrial policy formulated by the state government.

Asked whether Assam has enough spare land to ensure implementation of all the MoUs signed in the summit, Bora said such government lands were identified in the districts of Morigaon, Nagaon, Goalpara, and Kamrup.

"There should not be any shortage of land," he said, pointing out that additional land would be available once the Narangi-Kurua bridge over the Brahmaputra River is completed.

The minister said there are substantial plots of land on the Kurua side that can be utilised for setting up industries. He said solar power projects would require huge plots of land and such projects can also be implemented on top of water bodies.

One major problem faced by industries in Assam is forceful donations collected by different organisations. Bora admitted that it is a cause for concern and some industrialists have also raised the issue during private discussions. He said police alone cannot solve the problem and the mindset of people would have to change.

"If we can send youths in batches to the advanced and industrial states of the country, there is a possibility that the mindset of the youths of Assam will change as they will be able to see what the youths of those states are doing," he added.

By

R Dutta Choudhury