Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 21 laid the foundation stone of the proposed Ammonia-Urea plant at Namrup in Assam, marking the launch of a major fertiliser project expected to generate over 300 direct and more than 1,000 indirect jobs.
The project, which is scheduled to be commissioned by 2030, will be developed by Assam Valley Fertiliser & Chemical Company Limited (AVFCCL) at an estimated cost of over ₹10,600 crore. It will come up within the existing premises of the Brahmaputra Valley Fertiliser Corporation Limited (BVFCL) at Namrup. Officials said the plant will have an annual capacity of 12 lakh metric tonnes of ammonia-urea fertiliser and is aimed at reducing import dependence while ensuring timely availability for farmers in Assam, the Northeast and parts of eastern India.
The project received approval from the Union Cabinet earlier this year. AVFCCL was incorporated in July as a joint venture of the Assam government, Oil India Limited, National Fertilisers Limited, Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Limited and BVFCL.
Addressing the gathering after performing the bhoomi pujan, Modi said the Namrup fertiliser plant would contribute to the goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat by strengthening an Atmanirbhar Assam. He said the project would create employment opportunities for local youth while providing farmers with a reliable supply of fertilisers.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the project reflected Assam’s growing role as a development hub in the Northeast under what he described as a “double-engine government”.
Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister paid homage to the martyrs of the Assam Agitation at the newly inaugurated Swahid Smarak Kshetra. Accompanied by Sarma and senior officials, he visited the martyrs’ gallery and offered floral tributes at the statue of Khargeswar Talukdar, regarded as the first martyr of the movement.
The memorial, constructed at a cost of ₹170 crore, commemorates 860 people who lost their lives during the six-year-long Assam Agitation that ended in 1985. Officials said the complex has been designed as a space for remembrance as well as public interaction, with facilities such as water bodies, an auditorium, a prayer hall, a cycle track and a sound-and-light show depicting key moments from the movement and Assam’s history.