MANILA, July 14 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Monday it has approved a loan of 101 million U.S. dollars as additional financing to the ongoing West Bengal Drinking Water Sector Improvement Project to scale up access to drinking water services in rural West Bengal, India.
The additional financing and the ongoing project demonstrated an innovative, effective, and sustainable service delivery model for rural drinking water supply in West Bengal, the Manila-based bank said in a statement.
"The new financing builds on the innovative practices of the ongoing project and aims to expand access to piped water supply systems, reducing communities' reliance on contaminated groundwater sources affected by arsenic and fluoride," said ADB Urban Specialist Sourav Majumder.
"It will ensure last-mile water service delivery and empower local communities, particularly women, through inclusive infrastructure and targeted capacity-building efforts," said Majumder.
