The Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IIT-G) is hosting the 44th Astronomical Society of India (ASI) annual meeting, which has attracted over 600 participants including astronomers, researchers, students, and science communicators from across India and abroad. This five-day conference, inaugurated on Saturday, aims to enhance astronomy research and promote scientific collaboration in the northeastern region of India, while also inspiring students and the public to engage more with astronomy and space science. Notably, this is the first time the ASI annual meeting has returned to the northeast in 30 years, with the last event held at Gauhati University in 1996. The opening ceremony featured various awards, including the ASI Zubin Kembhavi Award for the GROWTH-India telescope team, and individual recognitions for Girish Kulkarni and Prateek Mayank for their contributions to astronomy. Prof. Devendra Jalihal, the director of IIT-G, highlighted the importance of such gatherings in motivating young minds in STEM fields. The conference will include more than 140 scientific talks and 355 poster presentations, covering a wide range of topics in astronomy.