On June 16, 2021, Government of India (GoI) virtually signed a $484 million (Rs 3,616 cr) loan agreement with the Asian Development Bank to improve transport connectivity and facilitate industrial development in the Chennai–Kanyakumari Industrial Corridor (CKIC) in Tamil Nadu (TN). In this regard, Seven-year contracts are provided for long-term maintenance of road projects.
Signatories:
It was signed by Rajat Kumar Mishra, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) for the Tamil Nadu Industrial Connectivity Project on behalf of GoI and Takeo Konishi, Country Director-India, ADB.
About CKIC:
It is a part of India’s East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC), which stretches from West Bengal to Tamil Nadu and connects India to the production networks of South, South-east, and East Asia. ADB is acting as a lead partner in developing ECEC.
i.Under CKIC, there will be an upgrade of about 590 km of relevant State highways covering 23 districts between Chennai and Kanyakumari.
ii.There will also be seamless road connectivity across industrial clusters, transport gateways, and consumption centres which will reduce logistics costs for industries. It will also increase the participation of Indian manufacturing in global production resulting in the creation of employment.
iii.The project also emphasizes sustainability, and climate change resilience.
Recent Related News:
The latest Annual Report of Asian Development Bank (ADB) released on 27th April 2021 showed that ADB had provided $1.5 billion(~Rs 1.11 lakh crore) to India in supporting the response to tackle covid-19.
About Asian Development Bank
Establishment– 1966
Members– 68
Headquartered– Manila, Philippines
President– Masatsugu Asakawa
