ADB approves $150 million loan for urban housing project in TN

Multilateral funding agency Asian Development Bank (ADB) on September 3, 2021, approved a $150 million (approximately Rs 1,095 crores) loan for a sustainable housing project for the urban poor in Tamil Nadu.

ADB in a release stated that the aim of the loan is to provide access to inclusive, resilient, and sustainable housing for the urban poor in TN. The agency highlighted that the southern state is vital to India’s economic growth, which is currently contributing 8.54 per cent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The economic opportunities have boosted the rural-urban migration rate in TN which already has one of the highest urbanisation rates in India.

Ricardo Carlos Barba, ADB Principal Safeguards Specialist for South Asia said the housing shortfall in TN accounts for 6.66 per cent of the national deficit, and when mapped against income level, low-income households bear most of the shortage.

The aim of the $150 million loan approved by the ADB for a sustainable housing project for the urban poor in TN is to offer vulnerable and disadvantaged households access to inclusive, safe, affordable housing infrastructure and services.

TN has a population of more than 72 million (7.2 crores) of which half the population lives in urban areas. With the rapid urbanisation and increasing urban population, the need for adequate urban infrastructure and services including housing will be significant, as per the ADB.

The poor housing project will aid in constructing housing units in 9 different locations and relocating approximately 6,000 households vulnerable to natural hazards to safer locations. The project will aid the Directorate of Town and Country Planning of Tamil Nadu in developing regional plans to map the state’s economic and infrastructure development including affordable housing, disaster risk management, environmental protection, and gender, said ADB.