A good gesture,and good to see the regional powers helping this poor country. Having been there,i really felt bad this truly beautiful country and the population.... trapped between the Taliban scums and the ultra-corrupt politicians...
Is India financing other projects ?
@anant_s @PARIKRAMA @ranjeet @mpk1988 @SrNair
@[Bregs]
A long read ... I know
India's Assistance Programme for Afghanistan
India has played an important role in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Afghanistan. Indian policy in Afghanistan is based on the understanding that democracy and development are key instruments to ensure that Afghanistan becomes a source of regional stability and does not slide back into extremism. The cumulative level of committed Indian assistance to Afghanistan amounts to US$ 2 billion. For a country like India, which is not a traditional donor, this is a significant contribution.
2. Most of India’s development projects in Afghanistan can broadly be divided into four categories: Large infrastructure projects; humanitarian assistance; capacity building initiatives; and 'Small Development Projects'.
(a) Government of India has taken on a number of medium and large infrastructure projects in its assistance programme in Afghanistan. Some of these are: Construction of a 218 km road from Zaranj to Delaram for facilitating movement of goods and services to the Iranian border (the project has been completed and handed over to Government of Afghanistan); Construction of 220kV DC transmission line from Pul-e-Khumri to Kabul and a 220/110/20 kV sub-station at Chimtala, completed and handed over; two more sub-stations are being constructed at Doshi and Charikar for which material, brought by air from New Delhi is being transported to the project sites in July 2013 (The work involves the construction of two sub-stations at Doshi and Charikar from the 220KV transmission line from Pul-e-Khumri to Kabul. Cost of the project: INR 186.71 crores. Scheduled date of completion: December 2013). Expenditure incurred so far on the project: INR 33 crores.); Construction of Salma Dam in Herat province (ongoing project, following approval of the revised project cost (INR 1457.56 crores) by the Cabinet in January 2013, work has resumed gradually from March 15, Expenditure so far incurred on the project: approx. INR 700 crores); Construction of Afghan Parliament (ongoing project, scheduled date of completion: June 2014. Sanctioned cost = INR 710 crores; expenditure so far incurred on the project=USD 49.63 million on civil and electro-mechanical components. The physical progress in civil works is approx. 57%.); Setting up of 5 toilet-cum-public sanitation complexes in Kabul (completed and handed over); upgradation of telephone exchanges in 11 provinces (completed and handed over); Expansion of national TV network by providing an uplink from Kabul and downlinks in all 34 provincial capitals for greater integration of the country (completed and handed over). The above list is not exhaustive.
(b) India's Humanitarian assistance initiatives include provision of free medical services and medicines throughIndian Medical Missions (IMMs) located in Kabul and other cities of Afghanistan (Only the IMM in Mazar is currently functioning while the IMMs in Kabul and Kandahar are temporarily closed, and, the the Mission had recommended the shutting down of IMMs in Herat and Jalalabad last year); Provision of food assistance of 1 million MT of wheat in the form of High Energy Biscuits (HEB) distributed to approx. 2 million school children across Afghaistan, ,daily under a 'School Feeding Programme' administered by the World Food Programme (WFP). Announced in October 2001, 452, 893 MT of wheat (including wheat used for production, and, the wheat equivalent of production costs, overheads and GoI cash support) have been delivered with over 547,107 MT of the 1 million MT pledge remaining. Assistance of 2.5 lakh MT of wheat to Afghanistan (the supply of the first tranche of 1 lakh MT was completed in February 2012. For the second tranche of 1.5 lakh tonnes, the Afghan government has appointed an agent to lift the wheat from Kandla port and transport it to Afghanistan [through land from Karachi]. 50,000 MT have already been delivered at Kabul while 10,000 MT is under delivery, and, another 25,000 MT will be lifted from Kandla in July 2013; Cost of the project= INR 300 crores and scheduled date of completion: December 2013. Expenditure so far incurred on the project: INR 70.76 crores);Reconstruction and renovation of Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health (IGICH) in various phases – Repairs, maintenance and painting of IGICH have been undertaken recently. A voltage stabiliser has been provided for the entire hospital and the incinerator has also been repaired. Heating and Plumbing systems remain to be fixed. The setting up of the Maternity Ward and the purchase of equipment for the Diagnostic centre remain pending; Gifting of 10 ambulances.
(c) The sector of education and capacity development has been a significant area of attention in India's assistance portfolio. Some Indian activities in this sector include: reconstruction and renovation of the Habibia School in Kabul; award of 500 ICCR long-term university scholarships (for undergraduate and post graduate degrees) and 500 short-termIndian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) vocational training slots for Afghan nationals annually from 2006-07 onwards (since 2009, both ICCR and ITEC slots were increased to 675 annually and it has been decided to grant 1000 scholarships for Afghan Nationals (administered by ICCR) during the period 2012-13 to 2020-21.); Upto 258 Special Discretionary ITEC slots have been offered to Afghan Ministry officials for training programmes in India – over 5 such training programmes have been organised and the Ministry of Commerce and Industries, the Ministry of Agriculture, etc have already had their personnel trained in various disciplines under this new scheme; deputation of 30 Indian civil servants under UNDP's Capacity for Afghan Public Administration (CAP) programme; ongoing Indian contribution to UNDP’s National Institution Building Programme (NIBP) which finances attachment of Indian civil servants as Capacity Development Advisors (CDAs) in Afghan government institutions -there are 10 Indian CDAs currently working in various important Ministries of the Afghan Government; signing of 'twinning agreements' between related Indian and Afghan Ministries; setting up of an India-Afghan Vocational training centre for training 3,000 Afghans in carpentry, plumbing, welding, masonry and tailoring; as well as a similar project by Indian NGO SEWA for setting up Women’s Vocational Training Centre in Bagh-e-Zanana for training 1000 women in garment making, nursery plantation, food processing and marketing. 614 Agriculture scholarships (Bsc, Msc and PhD) have been made available to Afghan students under an Indian Council for Agriculture Research (ICAR)-administered scheme. 60 Afghan agriculture students are presently studying in various Indian agriculture universities and more than 100 have been accepted for the academic year 2013-14.
(d) A significant addition to India's development portfolio in Afghanistan was a special programme to foster community-based, Small Development Projects in vulnerable border areas, in the fields of agriculture, rural development, education, health, vocational training, etc. that can have direct and visible impact on community life, and with focus on local ownership and management. The Small Development Projects were implemented in two Phases- the first in July 2006 comprising projects worth US$ 11,216,179/- and the second in June 2008 comprising projects worth US$ 8,579,537/-. 65% of the projects are reported to be 100% complete. Some of them are awaiting final clearances of concerned authorities for completion certificate. 76 projects have been completed, 34 projects are ongoing, 6 projects await tender finalisation with Afghan line Ministries, while 10 projects await MEA approval. Till date, US$ 13.135 million has been released to our Mission under Phase I & II of Small Development Projects. The implementation of the projects is done entirely by Afghan government agencies (with advisory inputs from Indian Embassy), which helps in building local capacity towards project management. An MoU for implementation of the Third Phase of the SDP scheme was signed during President Karzai’s visit in November 2012 with an additional provision of US$ 100 million. Administrative and financial approvals for 60 projects, at an estimated cost of USD 14.223 million, under the third phase of the SDP scheme have been received from MEA in June 2013. The MoUs (in English and Dari) for each of these 60 projects have been finalised and awaits signing. The Third Phase of SDPs is to be completed by 2015-16.
4. The future contours of the Indian assistance programme in Afghanistan were illuminated during the visit of the Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, in May 2011. PM had announced a further increase in India's aid commitment to Afghanistan by USD 500 million, thus raising the cumulative Indian commitment to US$ 2 billion. He also announced a number of new schemes that India would undertake in Afghanistan, to utilize the new financial commitment. These included:
Donation of 1000 buses for the Kabul and other municipalities with provision for maintenance support, training, and infrastructure. Afghanistan has selected Delhi Integrated Multi-modal Transit System (DIMTS) as the Consultant to manage the process of procuring the buses and creating the structures for their maintenance and running. DIMTS has submitted a revised proposal in June 2013. Cost estimates are to be worked out.
Donation of 500 tractors for Afghan farmers; Provision of seeds and other assistance for the agricultural sector. The tractors’ supply will be taken up subsequently once the methodology of supply of buses is finalized.
A medical package consisting of the treatment of Afghan patients in select hospitals in India over the next three years to be implemented through the Afghan Ministry of Public Health; the rehabilitation and professional upgradation of the National Malaria and Leishmaniasis Centre of Afghanistan; and the upgradation of the Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health, including the neo-natal and maternal care unit.
Setting up of a National Agricultural University. (The Afghan government is keen that the National Agricultural University (NAU) be set up in Kandahar and not be a mere upgradation of the faculty at Kabul. The Government of India has appointed a Task Force headed by Prof. M.S. Swaminathan and comprising MEA and IARI officials to implement this large project. IARI’s plan for phased development of the University has been shared with E/I Kabul. The first phase [2013-15] involves capacity building for faculty and establishment of an International Centre for Capacity Building (ICCB) at Kabul. During the recent visit of the Task Force to Kabul (May 6-7, 2013), in their interactions with President Karzai and other Afghan dignitaries, it was agreed that land (likely to be within Kabul University campus) will be donated for the setting up of the ICCB building comprising classrooms, seminar rooms, guest house, laboratory, etc. A training programme has been finalized with IARI for training of upto 50 Afghan resource persons in five different courses – Agronomy, Plant Proetction, Horticulture including post-harvest methodologies, Extension including through the use of ICT, and Livestock Management. Financial approval has been received to commence Phase I of the training programme (25 Afghan Agriculture faculty members) for six months from August 1 onwards. For the NAU in Kandahar, a Consultant will be appointed by the Task Force to make an overall assessment of the physical and human capital requirements.
The early finalization of a US$ 50 million Buyers Credit Line to promote exports and attract Indian business to Afghanistan.
A grant of US$ 10 million for preservation and revival of Afghanistan's archaeological and cultural heritage and cultural exchanges.
A grant of US $ 4 million to the Government of Afghanistan for the restoration of the historic Stor Palace in Kabul. The project is to be completed in 36 months starting from July 2012- July 2015.
Assistance in setting up an Afghan National Institute of Mines. To begin with, the Government of India has offered training at ISM, Dhanbad for upto 180 resource persons in the Ministry of Mines, Government of Afghanistan from April-December 2013. Training is to be imparted in 12 disciplines related to Mining for batches of 15 each. 5 training modules (for 15X2 = 30) resource persons have been completed.
Assistance in setting up of a computer laboratory at Habibia School.
Supporting the Second Phase of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Skills Development Programme for providing vocational training to Afghan nationals.
Establishment of a Jawaharlal Nehru Chair of Indian Studies at Kabul University.
5. Indian long-term commitment to Afghanistan was concretised with the signing of the Strategic Partnership Agreement between Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and President Hamid Karzai, during the latter's visit to India in October 2011. The Strategic Partnership Agreement identified a number of development sectors in which India would continue to support Afghanistan in the long-run, including agriculture, rural development, mining, industry, energy, information technology, communications, transport, civil aviation, etc.
6. The Government of India again reiterated its commitment to support the development of Afghanistan, both through government-to-government support as well as by facilitating private trade and investment, at the Afghanistan Conferences in Istanbul (2 November 2011), Bonn (5 December 2011), Kabul(June 2012) and Tokyo (July 2012).
7. India also organised a major 'Investment Summit on Afghanistan' which was organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on 28 June 2012 in New Delhi, aimed at attracting and promoting private investment in Afghanistan.
8. MoUs/Agreements between India and Afghanistan are in place in the fields of diplomacy, media and information, civil aviation, agricultural research and education, health care and medicinal science, tourism, education, standardization, rural development, public administration, electoral management and administration, small development projects and local governance. A series of fresh MoUs are being signed between Afghan Ministries and their Indian counterpart Ministries, under the aegis of UNDP's 'National Institution Building Programme' to which India is a major financial contributor.
9. It has been India’s endeavour to act in conformity with the best aid-effectiveness principles, taking fully into account the local government priorities, in co-ordination with other donors, using local sub-contractors and materials as far as practical, and with minuscule proportion of budget on security and salaries. These 'overhead costs' are significantly lower in case of Indian projects than in those undertaken by other donors.
10. As stated by the Indian External Affairs Minister in the Tokyo Conference on July 8, 2012, India does not see its development partnership with Afghanistan as conditions-based or transitory, or limited to the presently ongoing projects and schemes. Instead, India intends to progressively scale up its contribution to Afghan reconstruction and development, in line with the growing Indian economic capacities, and subject to the preferences, comfort levels, and absorptive capacities of Afghanistan.
Indo-Afghan Relations : Developement Partnership
