Japan International Cooperation Agency has signed an agreement with the Government of India to provide Official Development Assistance loan of 21,297 million Japanese Yen (approximately ₹1,200 crore) to Andhra Pradesh.

The loan is for the Water Resources Department and allied departments in Andhra Pradesh covereing “Andhra Pradesh Irrigation and Livelihood Improvement Project (Phase 2) (Tranche I).

The ODA loan is concessional at 1.4 per cent interest rate for project activities and 0.01 per cent interest rate for consulting services, and 30 years of repayment period (including 10 years of grace period).

Takema Sakamoto, Chief Representative, JICA India Office and S Selvakumar, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India signed the agreement in New Delhi.

Takema Sakamoto said, “The Project adopts a farmer-oriented approach to support their livelihood. The rehabilitation of irrigation systems under the Project can contribute to more effective cultivation in over 50,000 ha.”

Boost to agriculture

In Andhra Pradesh, the gap between potential irrigated area and actual irrigated area is huge (over 1.1 million ha) due to a large number of aged irrigation systems.

As cultivation needs to rely on rainfall, production and quality of crops in those command areas are not stable.

AP has put a strong emphasis on promoting Farmers Producers Organisations (FPOs) in order to enhance productivity and income as well as to reduce the burden of farming expenses, however, these are in early stages of development.

Allied activities such as inland fisheries and animal husbandry are also important for the improvement of livelihood security of local communities especially those who belong to historically disadvantaged groups.

The Project is aimed at increasing the agricultural productivity, strengthening institutional and marketing capacities of farmers by rehabilitating existing irrigation systems, supporting integrated farming systems and strengthening value chain development, thereby contributing toward improvement of livelihoods of farmers and other rural communities in Andhra Pradesh.

It focusses on rehabilitation of around 20 major and/or medium irrigation systems, and around 450 minor irrigation schemes across all districts of Andhra Pradesh.

JICA has previously committed approximately 407 billion Japanese Yen (approximately ₹23,000 crore) under JICA’s ODA lending support for various projects in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

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