EXIM Bank of India visits Northern railway projects

Friday, 26 July 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

A team from the EXIM Bank of India visited the project sites of the 252 kilometre long Northern railway line, currently being executed by Ircon International Ltd., a subsidiary of Indian Railways. The Export-Import Bank of India is the premier export finance institution of India, set up in 1982 under the Export-Import Bank of India Act 1981. Since its incorporation, the EXIM Bank has been a catalyst and a key player in the promotion of cross border trade and investment acting as a purveyor of export credit. So far, the bank has signed 159 lines of credit with 76 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, Oceania and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

A team from the EXIM Bank of India comprising of the bank’s General Manager Harsha Bangari, Assi-stant General Manager Ambrish Bhandari and Chief Manager Shalmali Jadhav undertook a site visit on 23 and 24 July to review the progress of the Northern railway lines. The team was accompanied by Manish, Counsellor (E&C) of the High Commission of India, IRCON’s General Manager S.L. Gupta and other IRCON officials. The US$ 652 million project of reconstructing the railway lines in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, from Medawachchiya to Talaimannar Pier and from Omanthai to Kankesanthurai, is being funded by the Indian Line of Credit of the EXIM Bank of India. The first segment of this project, the completed track from Medawachchiya to Madhu Road (43 kilometres) was handed over to the Government of Sri Lanka on 14 May 2013 for commercial operation. According to IRCON General Manager S.L. Gupta, the second segment of the project from Omanthai to Kilinochchi, covering a distance of 63 kilometres, is scheduled to be opened shortly. The reconstruction of the Northern railway lines is the second railway project funded through the EXIM Bank of India. Previously, the bank was associated with the US$ 78 million project of upgrading the coastal railway line from Matara to Kalutara South, which was successfully completed by IRCON in April 2012. When contacted, IRCON General Manager S.L. Gupta said that the team from the EXIM Bank of India is happy with the progress of the Northern railway lines and has commended the work carried out by IRCON and the role played by them in the development of the infrastructure sector of Sri Lanka, in particular in connecting the war-stricken north to Colombo.