Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a Rs 2,644.85 crore loan for India to improve the urban services in India. The loan will fund the policies by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs to accelerate piped water supply and improve sanitation, ADB said in a statement.

This loan is a part of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 2.0 and provides affordable housing facilities to all, including poor, urban migrant and industrial workers under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), ADB said. “This loan supports in transforming cities into economically lively and good communities. ADB plans to improve basic urban services delivery in different states,” ADB Principal Urban Development Specialist for South Asia Sanjay Joshi said.

ADB said India’s current 460 million urban population is the second-largest in the world and is estimated to reach almost 600 million by 2030, growing at an annual rate of over 2 per cent as urban areas will contribute more than 60 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which will generate economic activity and create jobs for people, improving competitiveness and urban livability, and rescuing the environment.