New Delhi/IBNS: The Indian government and Asian Development Bank (ADB) Tuesday signed a $125 million loan to develop climate-resilient sewage collection and treatment, and drainage and water supply systems in three cities in Tamil Nadu.
The Tamil Nadu Urban Flagship Investment Program was signed by the additional secretary for the department of economic affairs Rajat Kumar Mishra and the officer-in-charge of ADBs India resident mission Hoe Yun Jeong.
The financing is the third and the last tranche of the $500 million financing facility (MFF) for the program approved by ADB in 2018 to build the infrastructure in strategic industrial corridors across 10 cities in the state.
The tranche 3 loan covers Tamil Nadus Coimbatore, Madurai, and Thoothukudi.
After signing the loan agreement, Rajat Kumar Mishra said that the ADB financing will help ensure universal access to basic water and sanitation services and improve resilience against floods in the project target areas which are also the industrial hubs of Tamil Nadu.
Hoe Yun Jeong said through this project, ADB continues to support the developing and improving urban services in the state by deploying new approaches such as build and operating modality, automatic meters for bulk water users, and real-time monitoring through supervisory control and data acquisition systems.
ADBs urban investments are aligned to support strategic industrial corridor development in Tamil Nadu, he added.
The loan will support the development of two sewage treatment plants in Coimbatore with 529 km of sewage collection pipelines, the installation of 14 pump and lift stations and the building of 14 km of sewage pumping mains.
In Thoothukudi, a climate-resilient stormwater drainage system will be developed.
In Madurai, the project will support the commissioning of 813 km of new water supply distribution pipelines that will connect 163,958 households to 115 newly established district-metered areas with smart water features to reduce non-revenue water.
In Coimbatore and Madurai, two all-female self-help groups will be trained on the benefits of household connection to the sewage collection system, water conservation, sanitation, and health and hygiene.
