India-ADB Development Partnership (2011)

India's relationship with the Asian Development Bank has been a long and special one. This publication highlights some of the achievements of the partnership between India and ADB, and provides an overview of the development effectiveness and innovativeness of ADB's India program.

The breadth and depth of ADB's ongoing India operations is impressive - as of 2011, it stretches across 22 states and 5 sectors including transport, energy, urban, finance and public management, and agriculture and water resources sectors. In terms of depth, ADB's operations reflect its transformational impacts - energy, which not only powers industry and enterprise but also brings electricity to households thereby, delivering thousands of families out of 'darkness'; roads which make it easier for children to reach school in remote regions and for women and children to access health clinics more easily; clean water supplies which improve health and hygiene standards of the urban populace because more of it was accessible and for longer periods each day; more extensive irrigated fields which ensure that more farming households have the security of food for a greater part of the year; and access to credit which improves the livelihoods of rural households and cottage industry; and improved quality of life because state governments expend resources more efficiently freeing up more resources for public services provision. In the totality of its impact - in modest ways - ADB's assistance is really about improving lives and shaping destinies, and about hopes and aspirations for an even better future for many ordinary Indians.

Government of India and ADB have been working closely to ensure that ADB assistance is targeted appropriately, designed innovatively, and implemented efficiently so that each operation, in its own way, maximizes development impacts. This publication also highlights the "finance plus" elements of ADB's operations in India in terms of their systemic or transformational impact, piloting innovations, and leveraging additional resources. It also identifies the areas and development priorities where we need to jointly focus our efforts in the years ahead.