ADB to provide loan to improve water supply in Himachal Pradesh
Recently the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a loan agreement worth USD 96.3 million to provide clean drinking water and improve water supply and sanitation services in Himachal Pradesh.
Key points of this project:
- The project is in line with the Government of India’s objective of Jal Jeevan Mission, which aims to provide piped water to all rural households by
- It will upgrade water supply infrastructure, and strengthen institutional capacity to ensure safe, sustainable and inclusive rural water supply and sanitation services.
Features:
- Improvement in water supply infrastructure: Although more than 90% of the rural population of the state has access to drinking water. There is a need to improve the water supply infrastructure for efficient and better service quality.
- Sewage Management Programme: A pilot program on sewage sludge management and sanitation will also be implemented in Sirmour district, benefiting 250,000
- Strengthening of Jal Shakti Department: This project will strengthen the capacity of Jal Shakti Department of Himachal Pradesh Government and Rural Water and Sanitation Committees in Gram Panchayat (Local Government).
- It will support the state government’s water tariff policy reforms, and introduce asset management systems at the state level and district asset management plans.
- Water management related training will be provided to key project stakeholders and community based organizations, including livelihood skill training for women SHGs.
Asian Development Bank (ADB)
- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank. It was established on December 19, There are total 68 members in ADB. India is the founding member of ADB.
- Of the total members, 49 member countries are from the Asia-Pacific region, while 19 members are from other regions. It aims to promote social and economic development in Asia.
- As of December 31, 2019, the five largest shareholders of ADB are Japan and the United States (each with 6% of total shares), the People’s Republic of China (6.4%), India (6.3%) and Australia (5.8%).
- ADB is headquartered in Manila, Philippines.
Source – The Hindu