ISRO has announced the establishment of an Advanced Radar Research Centre at Chandrapur near Guwahati under Project NETRA, marking Assam’s entry into India’s strategic space surveillance network.

Alongside this, Adani Power Limited’s ₹48,000 crore ultra-supercritical thermal power project in Dhubri signals a transformative phase for Assam’s industrial and energy sectors.

The Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma described the radar centre as a landmark milestone. He emphasised that the facility, part of ISRO’s Network for Space Object Tracking and Analysis (NETRA), will strengthen India’s ability to track satellites, rocket bodies, and orbital debris, thereby protecting vital national space assets.

The centre will be spread across approximately 67 acres, with the Assam government allocating 200 bighas of land for the project.

Project NETRA is ISRO’s flagship program for Space Situational Awareness. It integrates radar and optical telescope facilities to monitor orbital traffic, assess collision risks, and ensure safer space operations. With thousands of satellites and debris crowding Earth’s orbit, the Chandrapur radar will provide India with independent tracking capabilities, reducing reliance on external data and enhancing national security.

Radar systems are particularly valuable because they can function in conditions where optical telescopes are limited, such as during darkness or cloud cover.

This facility will complement ISRO’s existing infrastructure, including the Multi-Object Tracking Radar at Sriharikota and optical telescopes at Hanle in Ladakh and Nainital. Together, these assets form a distributed surveillance network across India.

Sarma expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for selecting Assam for this strategic project. He noted that Assam, once considered distant from India’s major technology hubs, is now emerging as a centre for national strategic infrastructure. This development is expected to bring advanced radar technology, scientific expertise, and opportunities for collaboration to the Northeast.

On Sunday, Sarma also laid the foundation stone for Adani Power Limited’s 3,200 MW ultra-supercritical thermal power project at Chapar in Dhubri district.

Estimated at ₹48,000 crore, this is among the largest single investments in Assam’s industrial sector. The project will generate employment for around 25,000 people during construction and create approximately 5,000 permanent jobs once operational.

The Chief Minister described the occasion as historic, stating that the project would be written in golden letters in Assam’s journey towards energy self-reliance. It is expected to significantly augment the state’s power generation capacity, ensuring reliable electricity supply for industries and investments.

Together, these two projects — ISRO’s radar centre and Adani’s power plant — highlight Assam’s growing role in India’s strategic and industrial landscape. They represent a shift from being primarily a consumer of technology to becoming a host of cutting-edge national infrastructure.

ANI