In what could be one of the biggest examples of stalled public investment during the present BJP government’s tenure in Assam, the ambitious Tech City project in Kamrup with a total approved cost of about Rs 607 crore has remained largely unfinished even after five years. This has led to massive financial losses, blocked public funds and additional penalties, according to a Comptroller and Auditor General assessment.
The project was launched with promises of transforming Assam into an IT hub and attracting international technology firms. Today it stands as a concrete symbol of failed planning and weak execution under the Himanta Biswa Sarma government, the audit suggests.
According to the CAG report, only about Rs 176 crore has been arranged so far against the total approved project cost. Shockingly around Rs 175.5 crore out of that amount has already been spent leaving hardly Rs 0.47 crore unused. Effectively public funds of nearly Rs 175 crore are already locked in incomplete structures without any return to the state and without delivering a single functioning IT facility. 
Huge gaps and zero delivery
The report further shows that funds amounting to about Rs 431 crore are yet to be tied up by the government or its implementing agency even after more than half a decade. This means the project has been pushed ahead without concrete financing which is a clear violation of basic public financial management rules.
As per the CAG findings, the government has also incurred penalty liabilities of about Rs 2.8 crore on loan components because funding arrangements and guarantee processes were mishandled.
Five years of delay and no deadline in sight
The project was sanctioned in 2018 and was supposed to be operational years ago. However the audit reveals that the government neither fixed a completion deadline nor secured full funding for the project. This has resulted in long delays and zero functional progress till at least March 2023.
The audit clearly states that weak planning absence of financial strategy and extremely poor execution have left the Tech City project stuck since day one. It also points out that the company responsible continued with construction proposals without firm funds in hand even though it was already facing financial stress.
The Himanta government’s IT dream collapses
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has repeatedly spoken about turning Assam into a digital and technological powerhouse. However the present audit indicates a completely opposite reality. There are incomplete buildings frozen funds mounting liabilities and no clear path to completion.
Instead of bringing multinational IT firms to Assam as promised the project has failed to move beyond stalled construction and has turned into an expensive non performing government initiative.
Public money stuck with no return
The CAG concludes that around Rs 175 crore of public money has been blocked for years with no output no revenue and no employment. In simple words the state has spent nearly Rs 175 crore only to create incomplete structures that are generating nothing.
Another about Rs 431 crore still remains unfunded and uncertain exposing the project to possible permanent abandonment unless more public money is poured in.
Largest stalled investment under the current government
Among all ongoing State Public Sector projects the Tech City initiative now stands as one of the largest stalled and financially risky ventures in Assam. What was promised as an industrial revolution appears more like a monumental drain on taxpayers’ money.
The CAG also reveals that project authorities continued construction activities despite not securing loan guarantees and were fully aware that non compliance would trigger penalties. Penalties were eventually imposed.
A project started without money
One of the most concerning observations is that the government allowed a project worth more than Rs 600 crore to begin without ensuring funds. Starting such a large infrastructure project without confirmed financial backing violates basic administrative due diligence.
The CAG further states that the company has been unable to generate revenue to service the loan. This means taxpayers may ultimately bear repayment burdens in the future.
The bigger question
While the ruling BJP and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma promote grand announcements of development and digital transformation the Tech City project quietly exposes a very different reality full of mismanagement incomplete implementation and hundreds of crores of public money lying wasted.
With nearly Rs 178 crore already spent no visible outcomes and years of delays the government now owes a serious explanation not another announcement.
