Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

ADB backs Mumbai metro project with huge loan

THE ASIAN Development Bank (ADB) today (1) awarded its biggest loan for an infrastructure project, almost one billion dollars, to help finance Mumbai's ambitious underground metro network.

The ADB said it would lend India £700.23 million to help fund two lines on the teeming financial capital's first subway network.


A bank statement said the lines would "ease the distress of millions of commuters each day and help provide a cleaner, less congested city."

It described it as "the single largest infrastructure project loan in ADB history".

The Indian government has announced plans to build 12 metro lines totalling 276 kilometers (171 miles) in Mumbai.

Backers say the scheme is essential to solve the city's traffic woes and ease the load on its creaking surface railway lines, but the project has been mired in controversy.

The main line, called Metro Three, has faced considerable opposition in court, delaying its completion to December 2021.

Environmentalists tried unsuccessfully to stop the felling of thousands of trees and are unhappy at plans to build a metro car shed in an urban forest.

Thousands of Parsis, meanwhile, called for the route to be changed so trains do not pass under fire temples where Zororastrians worship.

The ADB said the two lines which it is supporting will total about 58 kilometres in length and are expected to open at the end of 2022.

An estimated two million passengers a day will use the two lines, it added.

"ADB financing will ease travel for millions of commuters across Mumbai, help decongest heavily crowded suburban rail systems, and contribute to providing modern, clean, and livable urban environment to its citizens," said India country director Kenichi Yokoyama.

Seven million people squeeze onto Mumbai's railway daily. An average of around nine people die on the network every day, either falling off overcrowded carriages or hit while crossing tracks.

(AFP)

More For You

UK business district
The Canary Wharf business district including global financial institutions in London.
Getty Images

Economy grew 0.7 per cent in Q1 2025, fastest in a year

THE UK economy expanded at its fastest pace in a year during the first quarter of 2025, driven by a rise in home purchases ahead of a tax deadline and higher manufacturing output before the introduction of new US import tariffs.

Gross domestic product rose by 0.7 per cent in the January-to-March period, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, confirming its earlier estimate. This was the strongest quarterly growth since the first quarter of 2024.

Keep ReadingShow less
Rosneft in early talks to sell India refinery stake to Reliance

Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani (Photo: Getty Images)

Rosneft in early talks to sell India refinery stake to Reliance

RUSSIAN oil major PJSC Rosneft Oil Company is in early discussions with Reliance Industries to sell its 49.13 per cent stake in Nayara Energy, an Indian energy company that operates a 20-million-tonnes-per-year oil refinery and 6,750 petrol pumps, sources familiar with the matter said.

The deal, if finalised, would see Reliance overtake state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) to become India’s largest oil refiner. It would also provide Reliance with a significant expansion in fuel retailing, where it currently holds a relatively small presence.

Keep ReadingShow less
modi-trump-getty
Trump shakes hands with Modi during a joint press conference at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on February 25, 2020. (Photo: Getty Images)
Getty Images

Key issues in India, US trade talks

TRADE talks between India and the US have hit a roadblock over disagreements on duties for auto components, steel and farm goods, Indian government sources said to Reuters, dashing hopes of reaching an interim deal ahead of president Donald Trump's July 9 deadline to impose reciprocal tariffs.

Here are the key issues at play:

Keep ReadingShow less
Anil Agarwal

Vedanta Resources, which is based in the UK and owned by Indian billionaire Anil Agarwal, has been working on reducing its debt. (Photo credit: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta Resources signs £438 million refinancing deal

VEDANTA LTD said on Thursday that its parent company, Vedanta Resources, has signed a loan facility agreement worth up to £438 million with international banks to refinance existing debt.

The refinancing move, where old loans are replaced by new ones, often at better terms like lower interest rates, has led ratings agencies such as S&P Global Ratings and Moody's to upgrade their outlook on the company this year.

Keep ReadingShow less
Trump-Getty

Trump said that while deals are being made with some countries, others may face tariffs.

Getty Images

Trump says major trade deal with India may be finalised soon

US PRESIDENT Donald Trump on Friday said a "very big" trade deal could be finalised with India, suggesting significant movement in the ongoing negotiations between the two countries.

“We are having some great deals. We have one coming up, maybe with India. Very big one. Where we're going to open up India," Trump said at the “Big Beautiful Bill” event at the White House.

Keep ReadingShow less