Hyderabad, Aug 14 (IANS) The World Bank will provide Rs.2,025 crore as a loan for the modernisation project of Nagarjuna Sagar, a major multi-purpose reservoir in Andhra Pradesh.
The loan agreement was signed here Saturday by officials of state government and a representative of the World Bank in the presence of Chief Minister K. Rosaiah.
The total cost of the project is Rs.4,444.41 crore. While the World Bank will fund around 50 percent project cost, the remaining Rs.2,419.41 crore will be borne by the state government. The project is expected to be completed in six years.
The state government has taken up the Andhra Pradesh Water Sector Improvement Project for modernisation and rehabilitation of the Nagarjuna Sagar Project to improve irrigation service delivery on a sustainable basis to increase productivity.
Rosaiah described the agreement as historic, as it is one of the biggest World Bank aid for a single project in any state.
Andhra Pradesh is also the biggest recipient of external-aided projects now and leads the country in World Bank aid, he said.
The Nagarjuna Sagar is one of the largest multipurpose major irrigation projects in the country benefitting 8.95 lakh hectares over five districts. As the project was constructed more than 50 years ago, the canal system in the entire project area has been damaged resulting in poor and inequitable water distribution system.
