The Government of India (GoI) has signed a US $250 million (Rs 1,855 crore) loan agreement with the World Bank (WB) for the Second Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP-2) Phase II, the world’s largest dam management program. The agreement is the 1st phase of ‘DRIP Phase II and Phase III’.
- The loan will be provided from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the lending arm of WB Group and it has a maturity of 13 years with a grace period of 6 years.
Key Points:
i.DRIP Phase II will provide financial support to the GoI’s long-term National Dam Safety Program and improve the safety and performance of existing dams across various states of India.
ii.The agreement was between the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Central Water Commission (CWC), representatives of 10 participating states (Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu) and the WB.
iii.Initially the project will be implemented in ~120 dams across the 10 participating states, and at the national level through the CWC. Other states/agencies might be added during project implementation.
iv.The agreement was signed by Rajat Kumar Mishra, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance (on behalf of GoI), representatives of 10 participating states, and Junaid Ahmad, WB Country Director in India (on behalf of the WB).
Note – The programme also complements the provisions in the Dam Safety Bill 2019.
DRIP Phase II and Phase III:
i.In October 2020, the GoI approved the ‘DRIP Phase II and Phase III’ to rehabilitate 736 dams in India with the Budget Outlay of Rs 10,211 crore, in which Rs 7,000 crore was the external funding assistance from the WB and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
ii.The implementation period was about 10 years from April 2021 to March 2031 with each project having 6 years duration with 2 years overlapping. It has the participation of 19 states and 3 Central Agencies.
iii.The WB’s support to dam safety in India includes the recently closed DRIP-1 ($279 million with $62 million Additional Financing), which has improved the safety and sustainability of 223 dams in 6 states of India and one central agency.
Dams in India: India ranks 3rd globally after China and the USA, with 5334 large dams in operation with a storage capacity of more than 300 billion cubic meters.
Note – The average annual cost of floods in India is estimated at US$7.4 billion.
Recent Related News:
In December 2020, the WB approved a $250 million Second Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP-2). It will improve the existing dams’ safety and performance across various states of India.
About World Bank:
President – David R. Malpass (13th President)
Headquarters – Washington DC, USA
World Bank Country Director in India – Junaid Ahmad
