The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has announced a five-year initiative to inject up to $10 billion—including sovereign loans, private financing, and third-party capital—into India’s urban transformation, targeting metro expansions, regional rapid transit systems, and infrastructure upgrades in 100 cities.
The investment, unveiled during ADB President Masato Kanda’s visit to India, aims to accelerate delivery of urban services and transport solutions amid rising urbanization, with India projected to have more than 40% of its population in cities by 2030.
“Cities are engines of growth,” Kanda said after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “ADB will mobilize capital, accelerate delivery, and scale solutions that keep India’s urban economy moving and people thriving on the road to Viksit Bharat @ 2047.”
The initiative is anchored by the Urban Challenge Fund (UCF), designed to crowd in private investment for urban infrastructure. ADB has committed $3 million in technical assistance to support bankable project design and build capacity among urban local bodies and states.
ADB’s new push builds on its existing $5.15 billion active urban portfolio, which spans water, sanitation, housing, and waste management in over 110 cities across 22 Indian states.
In urban transport alone, the bank has provided $4 billion over the past decade to metro and RRTS projects in eight cities, including Delhi–Meerut, Mumbai, Chennai, Nagpur, and Bengaluru—projects that aim to cut congestion and emissions while improving access for vulnerable populations.
Kanda also met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal to discuss transit-oriented development, rooftop solar scale-up, and operationalizing the UCF.
He later visited the ADB-backed Delhi–Meerut RRTS and held a CEO roundtable in Gurugram to explore collaboration in renewable energy and infrastructure financing.
Under its 2023–2027 partnership strategy, ADB is prepared to provide more than $5 billion annually to India, including $1 billion in non-sovereign financing to catalyze private sector growth.
Since beginning operations in India in 1986, ADB has committed $59.5 billion in sovereign lending and $9.1 billion in non-sovereign investments.
Business News Asia