NEW DELHI : The Government ofIndia and Asian Development Bank (ADB) on 15 December 2023 signed a $250 million policy-based loan that will continue support to industrial corridor development to make manufacturing more competitive, strengthen national supply chains and links with regional and global value chains, and create more and better jobs.

The signatories to the loan agreement for the Industrial Corridor Development Programme (Subprogramme 2) were Ms. Juhi Mukherjee, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, for the Government ofIndia, and Mr. Hoe Yun Jeong, Deputy Country Director, and Officer-in-Charge of ADB’s India Resident Mission, for ADB.

This loan builds on the $250 million Subprogramme 1 loan approved by ADB in October 2021 that helped strengthen policy frameworks for the Government of India’s National Industrial Corridor Development Programme (NICDP) and develop 11 industrial corridors.

After signing the loan agreement, Ms. Mukherjee acknowledged ADB’s continued support to the effective implementation of the NICDP the government launched in 2016 and updated in 2020 to strengthen the planning and management of designated industrial economic clusters to attract private infrastructure and manufacturing investments.

“The loan for the Subprogramme 2 will help in the integration of industrial corridors with transport, logistics and urban facilities under the government’s Prime Minister Gati Shakti platform,” said Mr. Jeong. 

“It will promote gender equality in manufacturing and corridor development, as well as conduct training and upskilling of workers in industrial corridors.”

In addition, the second subprogramme will help industrial corridors develop alternative financing solutions, such as green finance, for industrial cluster development. It will also improve industrial workplace safety and integrate environment and climate change practices in these areas. To help improve the investment climate, and in line with the ease of doing business, the programme will introduce a synchronised Central and State-level single window clearance system and digitise processes to streamline the logistics process.

The programme is expected to create jobs in the manufacturing sector in industrial nodes, covering areas such as agribusiness, automotives, electronics, food and beverages, heavy machinery, pharmaceuticals, and textiles. It will contribute to alleviation of poverty in the corridor states.