The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is extending up to Rs. 1,100-crore ( $250 million) loan to Namma Metro being executed by the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd., (BMRCL), a project which the bank said will bring substantial economic and environmental benefits to the fast-growing city.
The ADB Board of Directors approved the loan for the project on Thursday in Manila, which will partly fund the total 42.3 km of track, rolling stock, stations, and equipment for two key routes across Bangalore, according to a press release from the bank here on Friday.
A first
“The project, ADB's first metro rail project in South Asia, will provide Bangaloreans with multiple benefits, including reduced road congestion and pollution, and a safer, faster, fuel-saving public transport system for the city,” said Anouj Mehta, Focal Point for Public-Private Partnerships (India) and Senior Infrastructure Finance Specialist in ADB's South Asia Department. “This is amongst the first major metro rail systems in India to use a leveraged finance model combining government funds with commercial loans,” said Hayato Hoshi, Investment Specialist in ADB's Private Sector Operations Department.
