Japan has committed a loan of Rs.15,188 crore to India under its Official Development Assistance for implementation of five projects relating to enhancement of transportation capacity of the Delhi Metro, new and renewable energy development, energy conservation by micro, small and medium enterprises, upgradation of power distribution infrastructure in Haryana, and renovation and expansion of water supply facilities in Agra, Uttar Pradesh.
The ODA loan agreement for the five projects was signed between the Japanese Ambassador to India, Takeshi Yagi, and Joint Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Rajesh Khullar, in New Delhi recently.
“This is the largest amount ever signed at a single signing occasion in the history of Japanese ODA,” a statement released by the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi said.
The loan for the projects relating to new and renewable energy development, energy conservation by MSMEs and upgradation of power distribution infrastructure in Haryana was pledged by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during his summit meeting with Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in January this year.
Under the agreement signed between the two countries, the Japanese government has granted a new loan amounting to Rs.8,933 crore for enhancing the transportation capacity of Delhi Metro. The objective of the project is to link the existing 190 km radially developed network with additional 116-km belt line including six routes and six intervals which connect Indira Gandhi International Airport and Noida district and construction of a heritage line connecting Central Secretariat, Delhi Gate, Lal Qila and Kashmiri Gate. The project on completion will extend the network length to 329.4 km and transform Delhi Metro into a global standard urban transportation system comparable to the Tokyo Metro. The Japanese government has been providing financial support amounting to Rs.30,162 crore for development of Delhi Metro.
The agreement grants a new Rs.1,800 crore loan to power producers through the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd for development of new and renewable energy including solar and wind power succeeding phase-I of the project. The ongoing project includes wind power projects to the tune of Rs.1,160 crore in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, and solar power projects to the tune of Rs.220 crore in Andhra Pradesh.
The MSME energy saving project aims to enhance energy efficiency and eliminate power shortage in the country. Under phase-III of the project, an ODA loan of up to Rs.1,800 crore has been granted to 2,000 small and medium-sized enterprises through the Small Industries Development Bank of India for investment in energy conservation equipment. The financing facility will enable SMEs to utilise energy efficient equipment including Japanese cutting-edge technology at a low cost.
The Rs.1,608 crore Haryana power distribution system upgradation project, covered under the ODA loan agreement, is aimed at improving power supply in all of the 21 districts of the state. It will increase capacity of the sub-stations by 1,905 MVA and bring down power distribution loss rate to 30 per cent in the region. The Japanese government has been providing financial support totalling Rs.65,664 crore for 73 power projects in the country.
The Japanese ODA loan of Rs.977 crore for the Agra water supply improvement project, which commenced in 2007, has been granted taking into consideration the increase in project cost due to rise in material prices.