GS 3: Economy | Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

Why in news?

• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Union Government on November 26, 2018 signed a USD 200 million loan agreement to finance widening and upgrading of about 230 kilometers state highways in Bihar to all-weather standards with road safety features.

Bihar State Highways III Project (BSHP-III):

• The project involves upgrading State Highways to standard two-lane width with road safety features and paved shoulders including reconstructing, widening, and strengthening culverts and bridges.
• The Project will also build institutional capacity of the State for road design and maintenance and incorporate appropriate new technologies in the State’s road sub-sector.
• The improved roads will contribute to savings in vehicle operating cost and travel time, reduce vehicle emissions, and improve road safety.
• It will establish a State-level Road Research Institute to improve technical and management capacity of the Road Agency Staff.
• The loan will complement the efforts of Bihar Government to upgrade all State Highways to meet the minimum two-lane standard with better surfaces and improved road safety.
• Since 2008, ADB has provided four loans to Bihar, amounting to $1.43 billion, to upgrade about 1,453 km of State Highways and to construct a New Bridge over the Ganga River near Patna.