Guwahati, March 14: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for multiple development projects worth ₹23,550 crore in Assam’s Silchar, saying the initiatives will transform the Barak Valley into a major logistics and trade hub for the Northeast and strengthen India’s Act East Policy.
Addressing a gathering in Silchar, Modi said Northeast India has become the centre of India’s Act East Policy, acting as a bridge connecting the country with Southeast Asia.
आज जिस शिलांग-सिलचर हाई-स्पीड कॉरिडोर का भूमि पूजन हुआ है, वह सिलचर को मिजोरम, मणिपुर और त्रिपुरा से कनेक्ट करेगा। इसका फायदा असम सहित पूरे नॉर्थ ईस्ट के हमारे किसान भाई-बहनों को भी होगा। pic.twitter.com/w11Kv0ojBY
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 14, 2026
Highlighting a key infrastructure push, the Prime Minister performed the ground-breaking ceremony for the ₹24,000-crore Shillong–Silchar High-Speed Corridor, an access-controlled highway that he said will significantly improve connectivity to Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura and open new trade routes toward Southeast Asian markets.
“Barak Valley is going to become a major logistics and trade hub for the North East,” Modi said, adding that the projects in roads, railways and education will create new employment opportunities for the region’s youth.
Among other initiatives, Modi highlighted the construction of a new flyover in Silchar to ease traffic congestion and the electrification of more than 2,500 km of Assam’s railway network, which he said will enable faster and cleaner transport.
The Prime Minister also emphasised the contribution of tea garden workers and farmers in Assam’s development, noting that over ₹20,000 crore has been transferred to farmers in the state under the PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme.
He also announced the establishment of the region’s first Agriculture College at Patharkandi, which he said will strengthen agricultural research and promote agri-startups among local youth.
Modi reiterated the government’s focus on border development, saying villages along international borders are now treated as the “first villages of the country” rather than the last. He noted that the Vibrant Village Programme, expanded from Cachar district, is bringing development to several border areas in the Barak Valley.
The Prime Minister also welcomed the Assam government’s move to grant land ownership rights to tea garden families, describing it as a historic step that will allow workers to access government schemes related to housing, electricity and drinking water.
He further said that Assam is emerging as a major healthcare hub, with institutions such as AIIMS and a network of cancer hospitals strengthening medical infrastructure in the state.
Highlighting the state’s growing role in emerging technologies, Modi said Assam is also becoming part of India’s semiconductor ecosystem, offering new opportunities for the youth.
“The day is not far when Barak Valley will be recognised as a new centre of development,” the Prime Minister said.
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