World Bank: $150 million to Chennai’s Sustainable Urban Services

World Bank has approved about $150 million program to support Chennai’s Sustainable Urban Services and to turn it into a “world-class city”.

Highlights

• This programme will fulfil Tamil Nadu’s vision of making Chennai into a city which is more green, liveable, and resilient towards climate change.
• Apart from programme in Tamil Nadu, World Bank has also approved a $40 million project that will improve the quality of health services in the state Meghalaya. It will also strengthen capacity of state in handling health emergencies like COVID-19 pandemic.

Chennai City Partnership

Chennai City Partnership: Sustainable Urban Services Program is a $150 million programme that will help in strengthening institutions. It will also help in improving the financial health of service agencies and bring in significant improvements in quality of four key urban services:

• Water supply and sewerage
• Mobility
• Health, and
• Solid Waste Management.

Why this programme was launched in Chennai?

Metropolitan Area of Chennai is home to about 10.9 million people. It is the fourth most populous metropolitan area of India. Despite being an economic powerhouse, the city has not kept pace with the growing demand for key services. This city is also highly vulnerable to natural disasters, climate change as well as to pandemics like COVID-19. Thus, this project will help in mitigating all such challenges.

Project in Meghalaya

World bank project will benefit all the 11 districts in Meghalaya. It will also benefit health sector staff across the primary and secondary levels by strengthening planning and management capabilities. It will help in building the clinical skills of staff and enable women to utilise healthcare services in better manner at the community level.

Month: Current Affairs - October, 2021