Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe laid the foundation for the first bullet train project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. The ambitious Rs 1.10 lakh crore project is expected to be completed by 2022. According to reports, the high-speed train will have a capacity of 750 people and is expected to reduce the travel time between the cities from 7 to 2 hours, covering 500 kilometres. Japan-based funding agency JICA had signed a tripartite pact with the Railway Ministry and National High-Speed Rail Corporation for the bullet train project.
During the inauguration ceremony, Modi heaped praises on Abe and said that it was because of his Japanese counterpart’s interest that the project could take off so soon.”If one says take loan and return it in 50 yrs, is it believable? But Japan is such a friend, they gave us loan of 88,000 cr at 0.1% interest,” he said.
This is not the first time that Japan has offered a loan to India at a low-interest rate for the country’s development projects. Let us have a look at other instances when the Japanese agency, JICA, extended its financial assistance:
Also read: Not just bullet trains, 7 times Japan proved to be India’s true friend
Delhi Metro Project:
The Delhi Metro project has been receiving continuous assistance from JICA since the phase 1 construction began in 1997. The agency had sanctioned loans worth Rs 6,464.06 crore for the first phase at an interest rate of 1.30-2.30 per cent. Last year, it was reported that the Japanese agency was interested in funding the fourth phase of the Delhi Metro. It had provided a loan for Phase III to the tune of Rs 41,079 crore.
The JICA has been assisting in the construction of Delhi Metro since 1997
Chennai Metro Rail Project:
JICA had sanctioned an Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan worth Rs 2,000 crore for the development of Chennai Metro Rail corridor. The loan was offered at a nominal interest rate of 1.4 per cent for the project and 0.01 per cent for consultancy services, with a repayment period of 30 years (with 10 years of grace period included). In addition to this, JICA had also extended concessional loan assistance to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore in four tranches since 2008. It should be mentioned that the funding is for the 45kms stretch for the Chennai Metro’s Corridor 1.
“The cumulative loan amount for the project will increase to 183,595 million Japanese Yen approximately Rs 11,000 Crore”, the agency had stated in a press release earlier this year. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palaniswamy and former union minister M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the 8km long underground line between Nehru Park and Thirumangalam on May 14 this year.
Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link Project:
The Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) signed an agreement in April for the construction of Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link. According to the project, the agency extended an ODA loan to the tune of 144,795 million Yen or approximately Rs 8,600 crore. The funding will be utilised for the development of an expressway link connecting Sewri in Mumbai to Chirle in Navi Mumbai.
Bengaluru Metro:
The JICA provided ODA concessional loans worth a whopping Rs 4,000 crore for the development of Bengaluru’s Namma Metro. Add to this, the infrastructure was developed with the use of Japanese technologies. The North-South corridor of Bengaluru Metro was inaugurated in June this year. The latest phase of the metro that was inaugurated by former President Pranab Mukherjee covers a distance of 42.3 kilometres across the city. The underground section connects Nagasandra in the north and Yelanachalli in the south of the state capital.
Bengaluru Metro began its operational run in 2011.
Also read:Watch: Delhi Metro train packed with commuters, runs with an open door
Odisha Forest Development Project:
The JICA signed a loan agreement with the Modi government in March this year. The loan has been offered at 0.3 per cent interest rate for project activities and 0.01 per cent for consultancy services with a repayment period of 40 years. Under the project, JICA will help improve sustainable forest management, biodiversity conservation and community development.
Healthcare project in Tamil Nadu:
The JICA signed a Rs 1,500 crore loan agreement with the Centre for Urban Healthcare Project in Tamil Nadu. The loan was sanctioned at an interest rate of 0.3 per cent with 30 years of repayment period. The project covers 17 cities of Tamil Nadu that include Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Trichy, Salem, Tirunelveli, Erode, Vellore, Tiruppur, Thoothukudi, Nagercoil, Thanjavur, Cuddalore, Dindigul, Pudukottai, Krishnagiri and Periyakulam.
