Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that the TATA Group intends to train 1,000 youth from the state to pave the way for recruitment to a proposed "manpower-driven" electronic centre.

Briefing the media on Friday, Biswa Sarma informed that TATA Electronics Limited has submitted a proposal to the Assam government for setting up an electronic centre in Jagiroad, located some 50 km from Guwahati, with an outlay of close to Rs 40,000 crore (almost $5 billion).

The Chief Minister said that TATA plans to assemble and pack semiconductors at the proposed plant. “They spoke with the Assam government and after a satisfactory round of discussions, approached the central government to seal the deal. If the processes are completed, we will witness a major investment in Assam”, he said, adding that the state government has been working “silently” on the project.

If TATA’s proposal is cleared, Biswa Sarma opined, it will pave the way for more entrepreneurial enterprises in Assam. “We are also in touch with the central government so that a nod in this regard is given soon”, said the Chief Minister, adding that positive news is being awaited "in the next one to one-and-a-half months."

Whether the industry is set up or not, TATA has informed Assam that it needs around 1,000 employees from the state. “In anticipation for that [proposed] industry, they want to train 1,000 people from the state. It is because if the industry is set up, they want to employ trained manpower from Assam. We have been told that the [industry] has a lot of potential and will require a lot of manpower”, Sarma further disclosed.

Tata Electronics is a newly floated entity in the Indian electronics manufacturing services (EMS) space. In 2022-23, it produced mobile parts worth Rs 463 crores, cementing its place as one of the largest players in the Indian market. Although it reported a net loss of Rs 531 crore in FY23, it has been attributed to the company being in its formative period.

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