JICA, GoI signs Rs 12,107 crore loan agreement for Delhi and Bangalore Metro projects

(Image twitted by Christin Mathew Philip, TOI)

New Delhi, India (Urban Transport News): The Japanese financial institution Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on 26th March 2021 signed an official development assistance loan agreement with the Government of India to extend financial support of approximately ₹12,107 crores for the development of the next phases of metro rail projects in Delhi and Bengaluru.

For the construction of Phase 4 corridors of the Delhi Metro Rail project, JICA will provide ₹8,390 crores to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (DMRC). This loan is utilised for three priority corridors comprising of extension of 12.5 km Line 7 (Mukundpur - Maujpur), 28.9 km Line 8 (Janakpuri West - RK Ashram) and a new corridor spanning 23.6 km between Aerocity and Tughalakabad.

For the construction of Phase 2 corridors of the Bangalore Metro Rail project, JICA will provide ₹3,717 crores to Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRC). This loan is utilised for the construction of Reach 6 (Kalena Agaraha – Nagawara, 21.39 km), Phase 2A (Silk Board - KR Puram, 20 km) and Phase 2B (KR Puram – Kempegowda International Airport, 38 km).

“JICA has been promoting the development of quality infrastructure in Bengaluru, which facilitates sustained growth, and has been working for India and Japan’s robust bond. Bengaluru stood second in CO2 emissions followed by Delhi in 2015 and the project is expected to contribute to an estimated annual reduction of 89,952 tons of CO2 Greenhouse Gas emissions approximately by the year 2031,” said Matsumoto Katuso, Chief Representative of JICA in India.

The projects committed this time to contribute to an essential area of development in India and quality infrastructure to achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs), which are directly linked to improving the lives of people," he added.

The loans will also utilised for the procurement of rolling stock (train coaches) for both projects.

JICA has so far funded several metro projects in major cities of India like Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai and Ahmedabad with ODA loans of around ₹87,000 crores (JPY 1.3 trillion).