New Delhi, 19 April

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and invited him to inaugurate the yearlong birth centenary celebrations of music maestro Bhupen Hazarika.

During the 20-minute meeting with the prime minister at his official residence, Sarma also invited Modi to inaugurate the Assam bio-ethanol plant and lay foundation stones for the Rs 5,700 crore-ring road project in Guwahati and a medical college and hospital in Darrang, according to an official release.

The prime minister readily accepted the invitations to be the chief guest at these functions on 8 September.

Sarma conveyed his heartfelt thanks to Modi for accepting the invitations.

Later, the chief minister said in a post on X that it was his privilege to meet the prime minister.

'I had the honour of inviting him to Assam as the chief guest for the inaugural ceremony of the yearlong celebration of Bharat Ratna Dr Bhupen Hazarika's birth centenary,' he said.

Sarma said he took the opportunity to request the prime minister's presence for the inauguration of the bio-ethanol plant, with a production capacity of 49 KTPA ethanol using 300 KTPA bamboo as feedstock.

'In addition, I also requested him to lay the foundation stones of two key infrastructure projects -- the Rs 5,700 crore Guwahati Ring Road project and the Darrang Medical College and Hospital. The Hon'ble prime minister has agreed to grace these important occasions on September 8,' he said.