Though a sizable number of industries invested in Assam from the 209 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) signed during the Advantage Assam 2018 summit, the state government is being extra cautious this time to avoid allowing any "fraud companies" to sign MoUs in February 2025.
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The Assam government recently announced that a two-day global investment summit will be organised on February 24 and 25, 2025. Titled Advantage Assam 2.0 – The Global Infrastructure and Investors' Summit, the event will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expected to attend the closing session. The summit will focus on enhancing investments in key sectors such as road connectivity, railways, aviation, defense, and industries. Union ministers will participate in sector-specific discussions to explore investment opportunities. However, the authorities are particularly cautious this time about signing Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with any "fraud companies."
It is worth noting that during the Global Investors Summit in 2018, the Assam Government signed 209 MoUs with various industrialists and companies, with expectations of attracting around ₹1 lakh crore in investments. Key players like Ambani, Tata, Adani, the Inland Waterways Authority of India, the Airports Authority of India, and others had expressed interest in investing in the state. However, according to a source in the industry and commerce department, only investments worth ₹6,575.84 crore have been realised so far. Many companies, despite signing MoUs, did not follow through with their investments.
A senior official in Dispur, speaking anonymously to GPlus, said, “A sizable number of MoUs inked during Advantage Assam in 2018 were converted into agreements, and companies did invest. However, many others did not, as they were 'fraud companies.'" The official added that this time the summit will focus on genuine investors, and MoUs will only be signed after thorough scrutiny. “Accordingly, all investors will be invited,” the official explained.
The Assam government plans to organise roadshows and campaigns in countries such as Japan, Singapore, the UAE, the United States, and the United Kingdom. "Indian embassies in all these countries will organise meetings with genuine investors," said the Dispur source, adding that roadshows will also be held in major Indian cities like Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru. In these cities, only genuine investors will be invited to discuss investment options with the Assam government. "A special focus will be placed on investors involved in defense equipment manufacturing this time," said the source.
In 2018, over the course of the two-day summit, 213 delegates from 23 countries mingled with business delegates and government officials. Delegates from Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Canada, Cambodia, Czech Republic, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Myanmar, Netherlands, Nepal, Singapore, Thailand, UAE, UK, USA, and Vietnam exchanged ideas with industrialists from across the country and shared their valuable insights with the state government for evolving business relations.
During the summit, more than 100 B2G (business-to-government) and over 300 B2B (business-to-business) meetings were held. A total of 208 MoUs were signed.
It is concerning that the industry and commerce department has yet to calculate how many of the 209 MoUs signed in 2018 were converted into actual agreements. Major investors like Tata, Reliance, and Adani did invest in Assam, but many companies failed to follow through despite signing the MoUs.
Another source in Dispur stated, “In 2018, every state government department was given MoU signing targets, and to fulfill those targets, many bogus companies also signed MoUs with the state.” The source added that such exercises would be avoided this year and only genuine investors would be welcomed at the summit.
“Investment summits generally follow a common format and platform, so nothing can be drastically different,” the Dispur source said. “In February 2025, the investment summit cannot be very different from what happened in 2018. The key difference is that the investors who sign the MoUs need to be followed up by state agencies and consistently persuaded to invest.”
The source further noted that after the Advantage Assam summit in 2018, a separate body called Invest Assam was formed to specifically follow up with companies that signed MoUs. Invest Assam was supposed to simplify processes for investors. “For around three years after Invest Assam was formed, it didn’t function properly,” the source said, adding that it was only after 2021 that Invest Assam started functioning, though not fully.
In March 2024, the government claimed that Assam secured investments worth ₹13,364 crore, generating employment for more than 17,000 people over the past 14 months (since January 2023). “This was only possible because Invest Assam was fully operational from January 2023,” said the Dispur source, adding that after the February 2025 summit, Invest Assam should continue functioning efficiently.
Assam is placing a major focus on attracting defense-related investments to develop a defense corridor in the state. However, only time will tell if Assam can successfully use Advantage Assam 2.0 to attract genuine investors or if the public will view the event as a waste of Rs. 25 crore. Regardless, the authorities are determined to stay vigilant against "fraud companies."