Guwahati: Northeast states should leverage public-private partnerships (PPP) to address infrastructure gaps and improve public service delivery, Assam chief secretary Ravi Kota said at a regional workshop on Wednesday.The day-long regional workshop on PPP for the northeastern states was organised by the Assam finance department in association with the department of economic affairs under the Union finance ministry and NITI Aayog at the Assam administrative staff college.Kota said the region had significant potential to attract PPP investments, particularly in healthcare, tourism, energy and urban infrastructure.Assam finance commissioner and secretary Jayant Narlikar said PPPs should not be viewed merely as a financing mechanism but as a comprehensive approach to improving public services through private capital, technology and expertise. He stressed that appropriate risk allocation was critical to the success of PPP projects.Officials from northeastern states, the DEA, NITI Aayog, the Asian Development Bank and other development partners participated in the workshop.Discussions covered PPP financing mechanisms, including Viability Gap Funding and the India Infrastructure Project Development Fund. Sector-specific sessions examined opportunities in healthcare, solid waste management, tourism and roads.The workshop concluded with participating states outlining steps to identify viable projects and develop state-specific PPP pipelines.
