Assam Gas Cracker project to come up at Lepetkata: Deb

Guwahati, Dec 22 (UNI) The Rs 5,500 crore Assam Gas Cracker Project, a joint venture of Gas Authority of India (GAIL), Oil India Ltd (OIL), Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) and Asom government would be set up at Lepetkata in Upper Asom shortly, Union minister for Heavy Industries and Public Entriprises Santosh Mohan Deb said here today.

Inaugurating the three-day long 21st Indian Engineering Congress at Pragjyoti-ITA Centre for performing Arts here, he said once the project was completed, it would creat direct employment of about 1500 persons and indirect employment of about 1,000,00 persons.

The main product-mix of the project would be ''polymer'' which would be the Feed stock for a whole host of down stream industries, he said adding state government was contemplating to put up a plastic park in the vicinity of this project.

Mr Deb said the Union Government has undertaken a number of steps to rejuvenate and revitalise the Tea industry which is the backbone of industries in the state. Decision has already been taken to form five cooperatives each of sick and medium tea gardens in Asom and North Bengal.

Referring the State Industrial Policy, he said The North-Eastern Industrial Policy (NEIP) was going to be recast shortly to attract investment in Asom and other parts of Northeast.

The present NEIP 1997 is going to lapse on March 31, 2007, he added.

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