New Delhi India January 20 ANI The government of India has extended financial assistance to the tune of USD 527 million USD 267 million as Grant and USD 260 million as Line of Credit for Metro Express project in Mauritius, according to sources.
The 26-km long Metro project is being implemented in two phases - Phase I connecting Port Louis and Rose Hill was completed and e-inaugurated by the two Prime Ministers on October 3, 2019 according to sources.
Phase II connecting Rose Hill to Curepipe is expected to be completed by December 2022 and is expected to be completed by December 2022. An interim part of Phase II i.e. The Prime Minister of Mauritius inaugurated 2.7 km between Rose Hill and Quatre Bornes last year, according to sources.
The MoU regarding Indian grant assistance for implementation of Small Development Projects in Mauritius was exchanged on Thursday.
MoU was drafted on lines similar to HICDP agreements, which were concluded with some other countries because of the significant impact of the HICDPs High Impact Community Development Projects at the local level.
The MOU projects will relate primarily to socio-economic development, especially the creation of infrastructure in education, basic health-care and community development sectors. Livelihood activity, skill development, renewable energy, conservation of environmental and cultural heritage, empowerment of women and child welfare, and disaster risk reduction are some of the main themes of the projects.
The implementation of Small Development Projects will help in reaching out to various regions of Mauritius, both in the mainland and in the Outer Islands Agalega and Rodrigues, and to take up small-scale projects with a shorter gestation period and high significance.
The Social Housing Units Project was inaugurated on Thursday by PM Narendra Modi and his Mauritius counterpart Pravind Kumar Jugnauth. This project is part of the vibrant development partnership between India and Mauritius.
The two prime ministers also took part in a virtual foundation stone laying ceremony for two other projects, including a state-of-the-art Civil Service College and an eight MW Solar PV Farm, as part of India's development support. The Social Housing project is one of the five high-profile infrastructure projects identified for implementation in the USD 353 million Special Economic Package SEP extended to the Government of Mauritius GOM in 2016. The total cost of the project is USD 44.995 million, including grant assistance of USD 20 million under the SEP and line of credit support of USD 25 million from the LOC of USD 500 million extended in 2017 India and Mauritius have completed some of the projects under the SEP.
In October 2019, the Prime Ministers of India and Mauritius had jointly e-launched Phase I of the Metro Express Project and the ENT Hospital project. The two had jointly e-inaugurated Mauritius' new Supreme Court building on July 30, 2020.
The government of India has handed over Phase II-A of the Metro Express Project and Educational Tablets to school children.
The projects are Phase II-B of the Metro Express project between Quatre Bornes and Cure pipe, and Phase III between Rose Hill and Reduit. These are expected to be completed by the end of 2022.
The Social Housing Units project consists of 956 housing units with associated infrastructure such as Sewerage Treatment Plant, Leeching Field, Playground etc. The housing units are of the duplex type consisting of 4 housing units with two families occupying the ground floor and two families occupying the first floor, the housing units are constructed in two locations - Dagotiere 600 units and Mare Tabac 356 units. The carpet area of a single housing unit is approximately 60 sq.m. Every unit comprises of two bedrooms, living and dining rooms, kitchen, toilet and bathroom. The housing units are provided with adequate landscape, recreational amenities, children's playground, petanquecourt popular Mauritian game jogging track, as well as a community centre and kiosk for commercial shops.
The two leaders had also taken part in the virtual foundation stone laying ceremony of the Civil Service College that is being set up under an MoU signed between India and Mauritius during the State visit of Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth to India in May 2017. It is a prestigious project in the context of bilateral cooperation and financed by India through grants of up to USD 4.74 million.
The Civil Service College project is expected to be completed in 18 months i.e. After construction, the state-of-the-art Civil Service College will comprise an academic block of 3574 sq.m. A auditorium of 1120 sq.m, with all appropriate infrastructures like classrooms, meeting room, conference room, wellness centre, etc. It will provide a better facility for the civil servants of Mauritius to undertake various training and skill development programmes.
Along with our ongoing efforts in training and capacity building, collaboration in the Civil Service College project will be a long way to building links between Mauritius and India, and in generating long-lasting goodwill for India.
The two leaders also participated in the eight MW Solar PV Farm in the virtual foundation stone laying ceremony for the 8 MW Solar PV Farm project. The project in Tamarind Falls, Henrietta is financed by the EXIM Bank of India in 2017 and has a LOC of USD 500 million for various infrastructure projects in Mauritius.