New Delhi [India], July 28 : The Central government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Friday signed a USD 200 million loan agreement as additional financing for the ongoing Rajasthan Secondary Towns Development Sector Project to expand water supply and sanitation systems and enhance urban resilience and heritage living in selected towns, an official release said on Friday.
After signing the loan agreement, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Vumlunmang Vualnam said that the additional financing will support Rajasthan in its commitment to reduce basic infrastructure gaps in its secondary towns by expanding water supply and sanitation services and improving livability in selected urban local bodies.
The ongoing project—approved in September 2020—has so far laid 1,451 kilometer (km) of water supply pipes, 1,110 km of sewer pipes, and connected 68,098 households to water services in selected towns in Rajasthan.
Takeo Konishi, Country Director of ADB’s India Resident Mission said, “The project will incorporate various innovative and climate-resilient solutions for expanding basic urban services and incorporate nature-based solutions to rehabilitate heritage structures besides piloting public-private partnerships in the state’s water and sanitation sector to deepen private sector engagement.”
The additional financing is aimed at improving water supply systems in at least seven towns by converting all groundwater sources to surface water, replacing about 700 km of leaking water pipes, installing 1,400 km of new water supply pipelines, and providing 77,000 households connections with water meters. It will also establish three new water treatment plants, the official release said.
At least eight towns will be covered for improvement to sanitation systems by rehabilitating at least 580 km of sewers, building seven sewage treatment plants with co-treatment units to process fecal sludge and septage, and connecting at least 54,000 households to the sewage system.
Also, at least 20 heritage or heritage-like structures to improve the living environment and attract more tourists will be rehabilitated, it added.
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