NABARD sanctions Rs 18.76 crore to HP

Shimla, Jan 2 (UNI) The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned a loan of Rs 18.76 crore to Himachal Pradesh for executing 19 minor irrigation projects and 15 rural drinking water supply schemes under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF).

With this assistance, NABARD has so far sanctioned loans totaling Rs 1,690 crore to the state under the RIDF of which Rs 1,102 crore had already been disbursed, a bank spokesman said here.

He said of the 19 irrigation schemes sanctioned, 12 were flow schemes, five lift irrigation and two deep tubewell schemes for Bilaspur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Sirmaur and Solan districts.

On completion, these irrigation schemes would provide assured irrigation to 734.77 hectare area, while the drinking water supply schemes would benefit 47,268 people in Chamba, Bilaspur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla and Una districts, the spokesman added.

He said in all, the bank had so far sanctioned 1,272 irrigation projects, 510 projects for rural roads, 1,213 primary school buildings, 64 science laboratories in schools, 25 IT projects, 339 rural drinking water supply schemes and 19 animal husbandry centres and hospitals under 13 tranches of RIDF.

The bank's sanctions during the current year aggregate Rs 176.97 crore of which Rs 146.82 crore has already been disbursed, he added.

UNI AS PS MMS1913