Road upgrade to improve rural-urban centre links
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing US$177 million for the upgrade of two district roads and 11 state highways, with a combined length of 450 km, to 2-lane standard across seven districts of Maharashtra,
The upgraded 450-km roads will improve connectivity to national highways, interstate roads, seaports, airports, rail hubs, district headquarters, industrial areas, enterprise clusters and agricultural areas, said Kenichi Yokoyama, Country Director of ADB’s India Resident Mission who signed the loans on 19 Oct 2020.
The project will also focus on training the Maharashtra Public Works Department project staff to build their capacity in climate change adaptation and disaster-resilient features in road design, road maintenance planning and road safety, he said.
The project will improve connectivity between rural areas and urban centres in the state enabling rural communities to better access markets, employment opportunities and services, said Sameer Kumar Khare, Additional Secretary (Fund Bank and ADB), Department of Economic Affairs, after signing the loan.
Improved mobility will expand development and livelihood opportunities outside of the state’s major urban centers to second-tier cities and towns thus reducing income disparities, he said. #tenders #projects #loans #banking #ADB #infrastructure /fiinews.com
