Uttarakhand gets ‘in principle agreement’ for ADB loan
The Uttarakhand government has received “in principle agreement” for grant of loan from the Asian Development Bank for infrastructure development works in the hill state
The Uttarakhand government has received “in principle agreement” for grant of loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for infrastructure development works in the hill state, urban development minister Madan Kaushik said.
Earlier, the 10-year loan period for the ADB-assisted Uttarakhand Urban Sector Development Investment Program (UUSDIP) had come to an end on January 23.
It is worth recalling that civic works like laying of sewerage and water supply lines were to be carried out in the state under the project in four phases.
The ADB, however, last year cancelled a loan of around ₹1,200 crore for the third and fourth phases due to slow speed of works during the project’s first two phases.
“We have received in principle agreement from the ADB and are hopeful that the loan will get sanctioned soon. We had earlier submitted a proposal of around ₹2,000 crore and will now send a fresh one in the new format to the department of economic affairs (DEA),” Kaushik said on Wednesday.
The DEA is the Union finance ministry’s division which accesses and coordinates foreign loans from multilateral agencies like the ADB and the World Bank.
Once approved, the loan will be utilised to conduct development works in cities like Dehradun, Haridwar, Roorkee and Kotdwar in Garhwal and Nainital, Ramnagar, Haldwani, Kashipur and Rudrapur in Kumaon division.
Blaming the erstwhile Congress government for the “sluggish speed of works” during its tenure, Kaushik said, “They (Congress government) failed to ensure timely execution of ADB-funded works which led to the cancellation of loan for the 3rd and 4th phases. Once the loan is finalized, we will ensure that works are carried out within a fixed time frame.”
Surendra Kumar, spokesperson of former chief minister Harish Rawat, however, lashed out at the BJP government for “playing blame game” over development works.
“Instead of playing blame game, this (BJP) government should fix accountability of officials concerned for the delay in executing projects so that an example can be set for future,” Kumar said.