Assam in final stage of partner selection to build satellite, says CM

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. File. | Photo Credit: PTI The Assam government is in an advanced stage of evaluating and selecting a private-sector partner to launch its own satellite, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Sunday (August 23, 2026).Claiming that Assam will be the first state in India to have its own earth observation system, he said the government will have the satellite under the DBLOTT (Design, Build, Launch, Operate, Train & Transfer) model."Earlier this year, we invited Expressions of Interest to select an implementation partner under the DBLOTT model.”"Following strong interest from India's private space sector companies, we are now in the final and critical stage of partner selection, with dedicated committees evaluating the proposals," Mr. Sarma said in a social media post.He said 'AssamSAT' marks a landmark shift — from Assam being a user of satellite data to an active participant in the space-tech ecosystem, enabling faster and evidence-based governance.While presenting the state Budget for 2025-26, the then Finance Minister Ajanta Neog in March last year had announced that the State government would have its own satellite, which would help collect data for the implementation of critical socio-economic projects, besides keeping surveillance on its border."In collaboration with IN-SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre) of the Department of Space, Government of India, we would like to set up our own satellite, ASSAMSAT, to ensure a continuous, reliable flow of data for the implementation of critical socio-economic projects," she had said in her budget speech.Ms. Neog had said the satellite would also help in providing dedicated services for agriculture, disaster management, infrastructure development and border security management and police operations.She had said it would ignite the imagination of students of the states, who would be involved in building experimental satellites with the support of INSPACe and ISRO. Published - August 24, 2026 12:28 am IST