Investment in Northeast India: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday claimed that the central government has invested Rs 21,000 crore in the education sector in the Northeast in the last 11 years. Sitharaman said that, connectivity in the region has also got a boost during this period, with new states joining the railway map and several greenfield airports being built.
The Finance Minister said this on the occasion of laying the foundation stone of Assam’s first university focused on technical and vocational education and training on Saturday, November 8, 2025.
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‘Swahid Kanaklata Barua State University’ is being constructed at Bholaguri, Gohpur in Vishwanath district at a cost of Rs 415 crore. This university will be spread over a total area of 241 acres. It will have an academic block for 2,000 students, hostels for 1,620 students, residential quarters, guest houses and a student amenity centre. The university will offer courses in various technical areas such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Cyber Security, Blockchain, Drone and Navigation Technology, Quantum Computing, Brain Computer Interface, and Smart Cities and Smart Environments.
Sitharaman said, “Since 2014, the Central Government has invested Rs 21,000 crore in the education sector in the Northeast. More than 850 new schools have been opened in this area. The first AIIMS has started in the region, and more than 200 new skill development institutes have become operational. The country’s first sports university is also being established in this region.” He said that 15 new medical colleges have been built in Assam alone, while South Asia’s largest cancer care center is being built in the state and the state will soon have the region’s second Indian Institute of Management (IIM).
The Union Minister said, “The Center is working in coordination with the state governments of the region to promote the education sector.” Sitharaman said that apart from the development of roads, bridges and tunnels, the Center is also working on the aviation and railway sectors in the region. He said that 10 new greenfield airports have been built in the region in the last 11 years.
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