Announcement of India Receives Eighty Million Dollars World Bank Loan for Telecommunications on July 8, 1976

•World Bank 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A. • Telephone: (202) 393-6360 BANK NEWS RELEASE NO. 77/7 JULY 8, 1976 INDIA RECEIVES $80 MILLION WORLD BANK LOAN FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS India wil 1 receive an $80 mil lion loan from the World Bank to help finance expansion of its telecommunications system. The World Bank loan will assist a project that will be a self-contained part of the Posts and Telegraphs Department's expan- sion program covering the years 1977 to 1979. The project is expected to alleviate congestion in city and long-distance telephone networks, improve telex services and bring new telephone service to 220,000 subscribers. The project wi 11 include the installation of 274,000 local • telephone lines and the connection of about 220,000 direct exchange lines. A small sate11 ite earth station will be built to provide good quality communication between the Andaman Islands and the Indian mainland. The project includes electronic telex exchanges for Bombay, New Delhi, Calcutta and Madras. Forty percent of th& new direct exchange lines will be pro- vided in the major cities to meet priority needs and to provide essen- tial improvement to service. The remainder will be ~llocated throughout the rest of India. About 200 small communities will receive new telephone exchanges and 1,200 public call offices wi 11 be established to extend telephone service to more villages. Total cost of the project will be $415 mi 11 ion. The $80 mil lion loan will have a term of 23 years, including three years of grace, with interest at 8.85 percent per annum. NOTE: Money figures are expressed in U.S. dollar equivalents . • FORM NO. 1121 (5-76) T E C HN I CA L D A T A PROJECT: COUNTRY: TOTAL COST: Sixth Telecommunications India $415 mi 11 ion • BANK FINANCING: $80 mil lion for a term of 23 years, including 3 years of grace, with interest at 8.85% per annum OTHER FINANCING: Government of India IMPLEMENTING ORGANIZATION: Posts and Telegraphs Department (P&T) New Delhi India PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Improvement and increase in capacity of India's domestic telecommunications system during 1976/77 through 1978/79 by installation of additional telephone 1ines and associated facilities, expansion of trunk line faci 1 ities, extension of service to rural areas and increase in telex services. The project consists of the following main • items: installation of 274,000 1 ine units of local telephone exchange equipment, including introduction of modern electronic switching equipment; provision of cables and associated equipment which will permit the connection of about 220,000 direct exchange lines (DELs); extension of existing trunk exchanges and installa- tion of new trunk exchanges which wil 1 accommodate about an additional 23,000 1 ines; transmission equipment; a small satellite earth station to provide communication between the Andaman Islands and the mainland; and telex exchange equipment• PROCUREMENT: Equipment imported directly by P&T to a value of $30 mill ion will be procured through international competitive bidding. A sum of $50 mil 1 ion will finance the estimated foreign exchange cost of the equipment to be procured from domestic factories. ECONOMIC RATE OF RETURN: ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: 20% March 31 , 1979 - 0 - •