Multi-lateral funding agency World Bank will provide $250 million loan to construct disaster resilient houses and roads in disaster-hit Uttarakhand.
“The Government of India, the Government of Uttarakhand and the World Bank today signed a $250 million credit agreement for the Uttarakhand Disaster Recovery Project to support the State in its post disaster recovery plans as well as strengthen its capacity for disaster risk management,” World Bank said in a release.
The loan will help construct about 2,500 permanent disaster resilient houses and about 3,600 km of roads in Uttarakhand.
The credit agreement for the project was signed by Nilaya Mitash, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance; Rakesh Sharma, Additional Chief Secretary from Government of Uttarakhand and Onno Ruhl, World Bank Country Director.
A joint World Bank and Asian Development Bank team conducted a Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (JRDNA) at the request of the Union Government to rebuild the State’s infrastructure and assets lost in the June 2013 disaster.
“Disasters, like the one we witnessed in Uttarakhand, can roll back decades of development and are a fundamental threat to economic development and the fight against poverty. This project will focus on both reconstruction and disaster preparedness.
A very important part of the project will be to help the state be better prepared for the future. Disaster preparedness work will include putting in place information and communication systems that can provide early warning to people likely to be impacted,” said Ruhl.