India and ADB co-finance rural roads push

By:

Emma Rumney

9 Nov 15

The Asian Development Bank and the Indian government will jointly contribute $507m to the final phase of a project to improve rural roads in five Indian states.

The government will provide nearly $234m, while a 20-year loan singed off by the ADB today will provide £273m. It marks the last tranche of an $800m Rural Connectivity Investment Program, which has been supporting the Indian government in improving and sustaining road links between selected rural communities since 2012.

Theresa Kho, country director for the ADB’s India Resident Mission, said: “This third tranche loan will be used to make further investments in physical infrastructure, as well as supporting improved road design, road safety and asset management measures, and training, with women involved in all aspects.”

The funds will be used to construct over 6,100 kilometres of all-weather rural roads in the states of Assam, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal, and is expected to be completed in June 2018.

Shri S. Selvakumar, joint secretary (bilateral cooperation) of India’s Department of Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Finance, said the road improvements would boost access to markets, economic centres and public services.

Emma Rumney

Emma is a reporter at Public Finance International. She also writes for Public Finance in the UK.
Read her tweets: @emma_pfi

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