GUWAHATI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday paid homage to martyrs of the Assam Agitation, an anti-foreigners movement, at the 'Swahid Smarak Kshetra' here.

The memorial was inaugurated earlier this month. There is a lamp, which always remains lit in memory of the 860 martyrs of the six-year-long movement that ended in 1985 to free the state from illegal migrants.

Accompanied by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and others, Modi visited the martyrs’ gallery, where the busts of those killed during the agitation have been placed.

The Prime Minister garlanded the statue of Khargeswar Talukdar, the first martyr of the movement, officials said.

Talukdar had died on December 10, 1979.

Built at a cost of Rs 170 crore, the memorial has facilities like water bodies, an auditorium, a prayer hall, a cycle track and an arrangement for a sound and light show, which will highlight different aspects of the Assam Agitation and the state's history.