Photo Courtesy: India Today Group
Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma urged startups, academics, and industry leaders to link up on September 10. He wants an innovation loop that builds solutions for both local needs and global markets. He spoke at the MC² + Ignite outreach event, which was held by the Technology Incubation Centre at IIT Guwahati.
Sarma thinks deep tech is the future of energy. He believes the region can solve its own problems. "From our river islands to the depths of our riverbeds, Assam presents immense challenges, and it is our own innovators who are best equipped to build the solutions," he said.
The event drew massive crowds. Over 200 startups attended. More than 1,500 people registered, and 1,000 students joined to learn about entrepreneurship. This program is the first in India backed by public sector energy companies. It aims to pull technology out of the lab and onto the field.
Sarma opened the new MC²+ Co-Working Space and Innovation Node at the NRL Centre in Guwahati. The site packs in 50 workstations and 16 private cabins. It also includes specific offices for technical consultants and investors.
The MC² Foundation operates under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. A consortium of energy giants supports it, including ONGC, Oil India Limited, Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, Hindustan Petroleum, GAIL, and Petronet LNG. They committed Rs 455 crore over five years.
The plan maps a clear road for startups. It uses national grand challenges and milestone grants to drive progress. Successful firms get regulatory help and a clear path to sell their tech to public sector enterprises.
Updated at 11th September 2026 at 2:00pm
Beyond the tech push, the Chief Minister moved to soften the blow for students hammered by recent floods. Sarma greenlit Rs 1.56 crore from the relief fund to help 5,158 undergrad and postgrad students in the Sivasagar and Charaideo districts restock study materials and stay in school.
Sarma framed the broader MC2+ initiative as a shift for the state. "This is how Assam steps up as an innovation hub, beyond being just an investment destination," he said. The platform is designed to plug homegrown energy tech into live PSU installations through a sector sandbox and direct procurement pathways.
Updated at 11th September 2026 at 5:49pm
While the administration pushed energy tech, banking services across the state faced a crunch on Friday, September 11. Employees in Kokrajhar joined a nationwide protest, rallying from the State Bank of India main branch to the Central Bank. Workers are demanding a permanent five-day work week. They warned that if the government ignores these demands, a three-day strike starting September 28 will grind national banking operations to a halt.
Official records from September 10 confirm that the Rs 1.56 crore earmarked for Sivasagar and Charaideo students hit the Directorate of Higher Education coffers. The cash transfer from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund was routed through the Assam Secretariat branch of the State Bank of India to get money into the hands of 5,158 undergrad and postgrad students needing to replace ruined study materials.
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