The Chief Minister's Office of Assam announced on 3 June 2026 that Jagrut Kotecha, Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo India, called on Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma in Guwahati to discuss the food and beverage major's expansion plans for its ongoing operations in the state. The meeting signals continued private-sector interest in Assam's agro-processing landscape and comes amid the state government's sustained push to attract value-added manufacturing into the Northeast.

In its post, the CMO said: 'Shri Jagrut Kotecha, CEO of PepsiCo India, today called upon HCM Dr. Himanta Biswa to discuss the group's expansion plans for its ongoing operations in Assam.' The statement was accompanied by a photograph from the courtesy call.

Context

PepsiCo India is the Indian arm of the global food and beverage company, operating a portfolio of snack and beverage brands with manufacturing, sourcing and distribution networks spread across the country. Jagrut Kotecha, who leads the India business, is responsible for the company's domestic manufacturing footprint, agricultural sourcing relationships and market expansion strategy.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, in office since May 2021, has placed industrialisation and private investment at the centre of his economic agenda, with agro-processing positioned as a sector capable of linking Assam's farm base to organised manufacturing. Tuesday's meeting fits within that template of direct chief-ministerial engagement with FMCG leadership.

Policy backdrop

The Assam Industrial Policy 2020, along with successive ease-of-doing-business reforms under the Sarma government, has specifically targeted agro-based and food-processing units. Incentives on offer include support on land allotment, power tariff subsidies and reimbursement of state GST components for eligible units.

Assam has also intensified outreach to multinational consumer-goods firms since 2021, framing the state as a sourcing hub for produce such as potato, fruits and rice — inputs that map directly onto PepsiCo's snack and beverage categories. The approach mirrors similar investment facilitation engagements the state has held with other large FMCG players.

Stakeholders and impact

Any expansion of PepsiCo India's footprint in Assam would have implications across multiple constituencies. Assam's farmers stand to gain from contract-farming and structured procurement arrangements, particularly for crops feeding the snack supply chain.

The state's food-processing workforce and MSME suppliers — including packaging, logistics and ancillary services vendors — are likely beneficiaries of any new capacity or scaled-up sourcing. For the state exchequer, deeper FMCG investment offers a pathway to broaden the industrial tax base beyond the traditional tea, oil and gas sectors.

The CMO post did not disclose the size of the proposed expansion, possible new plant locations, employment estimates or a timeline. Specifics on each of these will be material to assessing the economic footprint of the plans discussed.

What's next

Attention will turn to whether the state government or PepsiCo India follows up with a formal announcement detailing investment quantum, site selection and sourcing commitments. Such disclosures typically surface either through industrial summits hosted by the state or via memoranda of understanding signed in the presence of senior leadership.

The Assam assembly is also likely to see questions on employment generation and farmer linkages from any forthcoming project. For now, the courtesy call positions Assam as an active suitor in the contest among Indian states for the next wave of agro-industrial capacity — a contest in which northeastern states are increasingly visible bidders.