Asian Development Bank (ADB) vice-president (operations) Wencai Zhang on Thursday identified the Visakhapatnam and the Srikalahasti nodes of the Visakhapatnam-Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC) as having an investment potential of $2.80 billion in the next five years.
Making the nodes operational had been prioritised by the ADB and the State government and $245 million was provided and nearly $81 million actually disbursed for implementation of the project, which is a part of the East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC). Preparation of the master plan for the nodes had been completed.
About funding the construction of Amaravati, he said: “The ADB will look at ways to support the development of Amaravati if the State asks to do it and talk to both the Central and the State governments. We can extend assistance for urban infrastructure creation, transportation and other areas. The bank is examining A.P.’s request for a $500-million loan for a rural water supply project.”
Speaking to a select gathering of mediapersons at the Secretariat, Mr. Zhang said the ADB had sanctioned a loan of $625 million in 2016 including a policy-based loan of $125 million and once the VCIC took full shape, manufacturing output of this resource-rich coastal region would increase by 14 times, which in value terms would be about $130 billion from the present $10 billion.
Long association
Mr. Zhang recalled that the ADB’s association with A.P. had started way back in 1989 with its funding of the Rayalaseema Thermal Power Project to the tune of $230 million and said the VCIC was progressing extremely well devoid of even a single complaint of violation of its stringent safeguards policy.
The ADB’s focus, Mr. Zhang said, was on supporting urban infrastructure and social sector and knowledge missions and said an investment of $5 billion each was lined up by it for the ECEC through 2018-22.
The ADB is funding various projects in West Bengal, Odisha, the development of the Chennai-Kanyakumari corridor in Tamil Nadu and the establishment of a floating solar power plant in Visakhapatnam etc, Mr. Zhang added.
