The Government of India, the Government of Madhya Pradesh and the World Bank have signed a $210 million loan agreement for the Madhya Pradesh Rural Connectivity Project. The Project is expected to improve the durability, resilience and safety of the gravel surfaced rural roads and enhance the capacity of the state to manage its rural roads network.

The Project will cover 10,510 km stretch of rural roads in Madhya Pradesh that fall under the Chief Minister's Gram Sadak Yojana (CMGSY) program. Of this 10,000 km will be upgraded from existing gravel to bituminous surface roads, while 510 km of new roads will be built to the same bituminous surface standard.

"Government of India is making all efforts to ensure that communities in the most remote areas across the country are connected through a road network. All weather road connectivity is crucial for economic growth, especially in the rural areas," said Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance. "The Madhya Pradesh roads project will enhance rural road connectivity in the state which will open up opportunities for economic development and access to social services for beneficiary communities in the state and help in reducing poverty."

The agreement for the Project was signed by Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, on behalf of the Government of India; Pankaj Jhawar, Chief General Manager, Madhya Pradesh Rural Road Development Authority on behalf of the Government of Madhya Pradesh; and Hisham Abdo, Acting Country Director, World Bank India, on behalf of the World Bank.

"This project will leverage resources to support innovations in road construction, improve road safety, and reduce carbon footprint in the transport sector by mainstreaming climate resilient technology in road design and construction," said Hisham Abdo, Acting Country Director, World Bank India.

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