i.The main purpose of the Loan agreement is for increasing the Electricity Generation Capacity in the State of Assam through construction of a 120 Megawatts (MW) hydroelectric power plant over Kopili River.
ii.A USD 2 Million grant from Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR) is also associated with the project to finance equipment & consulting services.
iii.The signatories to the Loan Agreement were Dr C. S. Mohapatra, Additional Secretary in Ministry of Finance who signed for India & Hoe Yun Jeong, Officer-in-charge of ADB’s India Resident Mission, who signed on behalf of ADB.
Key Points:
i.The hydroelectricity project will increase availability of electricity for households.
ii.The project will increase electricity supplied from Clean Energy by 469 Gigawatt-hour (GWh) by 2025 & reduce Greenhouse Gas emission by 3.6 Lakh Tonnes of Carbon Dioxide annually.
Other purposes of the Loan:
i.For project capacity building of Assam Power Generation Corporation Limited (APGCL) on construction, operations & maintenance and safeguards.
ii.To Finance APGCL’s enterprise resource planning system.
iii.To improve Gender equity & enhance gender capacity of APGCL.
iv.It will improve women’s participation & contribution in training & community-led interventions.
Assam Power Sector Investment Program (APSIP):
i.APSIP is supported by ADB, it aims to increase the generation capacity in Assam to 1, 410 MW & reduce distribution losses to 15% by 2022.
ii.In July 2014, ADB agreed to provide an Loan amount of USD 300 Million for the APSIP through Multitranche Financing Facility (MFF).
ADB & GoI sign USD 10 Million for PRF in Himachal Pradesh:
i.ADB & GoI signed USD 10 Million Project Readiness Financing (PRF) to help finance piloting activities, project for expanding horticulture production & farm household income in Himachal Pradesh.
ii.The project will support development of subtropical horticulture, cultivation of fruits & vegetables in the southern region of Himachal Pradesh.
iii.The project is lagging due to lack of access to perennial water sources, crops losses due to wild animal encroachment & limited access to high-value markets.
Recent Related News:
i.On November 3, 2020 The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a USD 132.8 million loan to Modernize Power Distribution Network in Meghalaya.
About Asian Development Bank (ADB):
Headquarters– Mandaluyong, Manila, Philippines
President– Masatsugu Asakawa
Membership– 68 countries(Including India)
