Asian Development Bank (ADB) and India sign $177 million loan for Maharashtra roads

Asian Development Bank (ADB) and India sign $177 million loan for Maharashtra roads

Part of: GS-Prelims and GS-II – Global Groupings & GS-III – Infrastructure (Roads)

In News:

• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Indian Government recently signed a $177 million loan to upgrade state highways and major district roads in the state of Maharashtra.

Key takeaways 

• The project will improve connectivity between rural areas and urban centers in the state. 
• It will enable rural communities to better access markets, employment opportunities and services. 
• Mobility will improve. 
• It will expand development and livelihood opportunities to second-tier cities and towns which will lead to reduction in income disparities. 
• It will also strengthen road safety measures by developing a road safety audit framework that will protect vulnerable groups such as the elderly, women, and children. 
• Another feature is to update road maintenance system by encouraging 5-year performance-based maintenance obligations to contractors. 

Important value additions 

Asian Development Bank (ADB)

• It is a regional development bank. 
• It was established on 19 December 1966. 
• Headquarters: Mandaluyong, Philippines. 
• It was established to promote social and economic development in Asia. 
• Motto: ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient and sustainable Asia & the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty.
• It offers hard loans (currency) on commercial terms primarily to middle income countries in Asia and 
• It provides soft loans (loan with a below-market rate of interest) to poorer countries in the region. 
• Both types of loans are sourced from the bank’s ordinary capital resources (OCR).
• Five largest borrowing countries are China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and Bangladesh.