New Delhi: Asian Development Bank (ADB) today pledged 10 billion dollar support for improving the economic performance of low-income states and developing economic corridors under the Make-in-India initiative. This combined total of 10 billion dollar in major investments would be part of ADB’s new country strategy, which proposes annual lending over the 5-year period of 3-4 billion dollar from sovereign and non-sovereign operations. The final amounts will depend on the implementation readiness of projects under preparation and the borrowing policies of the central and state governments. Addressing a press conference here, Bank’s President Takehiko Nakao said that ADB stands ready to meet immediate development needs of up to 5 billion dollar over 5 years period for less developed states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, addressing critical infrastructure issue and capacity deficit. Mr Nakao, who was on the last day of a 3-day visit to India, applauded the government for its effective macroeconomic management, and appreciated the reforms introduced to improve the investment climate and incentivize economic activities over the last 3 years. In particular, he commended the government for its efforts to implement the uniform Goods and Services Tax, effective 1 July, that would create a single national market and spur economic growth by removing tax distortions. After meeting Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Minister of Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman, and other senior officials in New Delhi, Mr Nakao said that he was optimistic about India’s growth as ADB expects India to grow by 7.4 per cent in the current financial year (FY) ending 31 March 2018, and 7.6 per cent in FY2018.
