India - West Bengal Social Forestry Project : Credit 1178 - Project Agreement - Conformed

OFICIAL CREDIT NUMER 1178 IW I;OCUMENTS Project Agreement (West Bengal Social Forestry Project) between INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION and STATE OF WEST BENGAL Dated , 1982 CREDIT NUMBER 1178 IN PROJECT AGREEMENT AGREEMENT, dated / , 1982, between INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCI ON (hereinafter called the Association) and STATE OF WEST BENGAL, acting by its Governor (hereinafter called West Bengal). WHEREAS (A) by the Development Credit Agreement of even date herewith between India, acting by its President (hereinafter called the Borrower) and the Association, the Association has agreed to make available to the Borrower an amount in various currencies equivalent to twenty-five million eight hundred thousand Special Drawing Rights (SDR 25,800,000), on the terms and conditions set forth in the Development Credit Agreement, but only on condition that West Bengal agree to undertake such obligations toward the Association as are hereinafter set forth; (B) in accordance with the Borrower's standard arrangements for development assistance to the States of India, the proceeds of the credit provided for under the Development Credit Agreement will be made available to West Bengal; and WHEREAS West Bengal, in consideration of the foregoing, has agreed to undertake the obligations hereinafter set forth; NOW THEREFORE the parties hereto hereby agree as follows: ARTICLE I L-finitions Section 1.01. Wherever used in this Agreement, unless the context shall otherwise require, the several terms defined in the Development Credit Agreement and in the General Conditions (as so defined) have the respective meanings therein set forth. ARTICLE II Execution of the Project Section 2.01. West Bengal shall carry out the Project described in Schedule 2 to the Development Credit Agreement with due diligence and efficiency and in conformity with appro- priate administrative, financial and engineering practices, and shall provide, or cause to be provided, promptly as needed, the -2- funds, facilities, services and other resources required for the purpose. Section 2.02. Except as the Association shall otherwise agree, procurement of the goods and civil works to be financed out of the proceeds of the Credit shall be governed by the provisions of the Schedule to this Agreement. Section 2.03. (a) West Bengal undertakes to insure, or make adequate provision for the insurance of, the imported goods to be financed out of the proceeds of the Credit made available to it by the Borrower against hazards incident to the acquisition, trans- portation and delivery thereof to the place of use or installa- tion, and for such insurance any indemnity shall be payable in a currency freely usable by West Bengal to replace or repair such goods. (b) Except as the Association may otherwise agree, West Bengal shall cause all goods and services financed out of the proceeds of the Credit made available to it by the Borrower to be used exclusively for the Project. Section 2.04. (a) West Bengal shall furnish to the Associa- tion, promptly upon their preparation, the plans, specifications, reports, contract documents and work and procurement schedules for the Project, and any material modifications thereof or additions thereto, in such detail as the Association shall reasonably request. (b) West Bengal: (i) shall maintain records and procedures adequate to record and monitor the progress of the Project (in- cluding its cost and, where appropriate, the benefits to be derived from it), to identify the goods and services financed out of the proceeds of the Credit, and to disclose their use in the Project; (ii) shall enable the Association's accredited represen- tatives to visit the facilities and construction sites included in the Project and to examine the goods financed out of the proceeds of the Credit and any relevant records and documents; and (iii) shall furnish to the Association at regular intervals all such information as the Association shall reasonably request concerning the Project, its cost and, where appropriate, the benefits to be derived from it, the expenditure of the proceeds of the Credit and the goods and services financed out of such proceeds. - 3 - (c) West Bengal shall prepare and furnish to the Associa- tion: (i) by March 31, 1984, a mid-term evaluation report concern- ing the progress of the Project, particularly with regard to village woodlots, strip plantations and the impact of farm forestry; and (ii) promptly after completion of the Project, but in any event not later than six months after the Closing Date or such later date as may be agreed for this purpose between West Bengal and the Association, a report, of such scope and in such detail as the Association shall reasonably request, on the execu- tion and initial operation of the Project, its cost and the benefits derived and to be derived from it, the performance by West Bengal and the Association of their respective obligations under the Project Agreement and the accomplishment of the purposes of the Credit. (d) West Bengal shall enable the Association's accredited representatives to examine all plants, installations, sites, works, buildings, property, equipment, records and documents of West Bengal relevant to the performance of the obligations of West Bengal under this Agreement. Section 2.05. (a) West Bengal shall at the request of the Association, exchange views with the Association with regard to the progress of the Project, the performance of its obligations under this Agreement and other matters relating to the purposes of the Credit. (b) West Bengal shall promptly inform the Association of any condition which interferes or threatens to interfere with the progress of the Project, the accomplishment of the purposes of the Credit, or the performance by West Bengal of its obligations under this Agreement. Section 2.06. West Bengal shall take all such action as shall be necessary to acquire as and when needed all such land and rights in respect of land as shall be required for carrying out the Project and shall furnish to the Association, promptly upon the Association's request after such acquisition, evidence satis- factory to the Association that such land and rights in respect of land are available for purposes related to the Project. Section 2.07. West Bengal shall appoint not later than June 30, 1982, duly qualified and competent persons to the following positions within SFW: (i) the Chief Publicity Officer in charge of the Public Relations Unit; and (ii) the Deputy Conserva- tor of Forests in charge of the Monitoring and Evaluation Unit. -4- Section 2.08. West Bengal shall appoint not later than June 30, 1982, consultants, whose qualifications, experience and terms and conditions of employment shall be satisfactory to the Association, for (i) stove technology, (ii) communication and extension to help design an extension program and organize training courses for senior SFW staff, and (iii) monitoring and evaluation of the Project. Section 2.09. West Bengal shall establish two circles for social forestry within SFW with adequate staff, one not later than June 30, 1982, and the other not later than December 31, 1983. Section 2.10. West Bengal shall take suitable measures to ensure that the field staff of the SFW shall live in or near the areas assigned for their operations and to this end shall provide said staff with necessary housing or rent allowances. Section 2.11. West Bengal shall establish by June 30, 1982: (i) a State Policy Committee which shall ensure coordination among the various state departments involved in the Project and determine overall state social forestry policy; and (ii) a District Committee in each district in West Bengal which shall ensura interdepartmental coordination. ARTICLE III Financial Covenants Section 3.01. West Bengal shall cause its departments and other agencies and authorities responsible for carrying out the Project or any part thereof to: (i) maintain separate records and accounts adequate to reflect, in accordance with sound accounting principles and procedures consistently applied, its resources, expenditures at.d operations related to the Project; and (ii) furnish to the Association copies of their accounts and financial statement related to the Project for each fiscal year, certified as to their accuracy and authenticity by an independent auditor acceptable to the Association, as soon as available but in any case not later than nine months after the end of such year. - 5 - Section 3.02. West Bengal shall cause its departments and other agencies and authorities responsible for carrying out the Project or any part thereof to: (i) have their accounts and financial statements related to the Project for each fiscal year audited, in accordance with appropriate auditing principles consistently applied, by independent auditors acceptable to the Association; (ii) furnish to the Association immediately following its finalization, the report of such audit by said auditors, of such scope and in such detail as the Association shall have reasonably requested; and (iii) furnish to the Association such other information concerning such accounts and records, financial statements and the audit thereof as the Association shall from time to time reasonably request. ARTICLE IV Effective Date; Termination; Cancellation and Suspension Section 4.01. This Agreement shall come into force and effect on the date upon which the Development Credit Agreement becomes effective. Section 4.02. (a) This Agreement and all obligations of the Association and of West Bengal thereunder shall terminate on the earlier of the following two dates: (i) the date on which the Development Credit Agreement shall terminate in accordance with its terms; or (ii) a date 20 years after the date of this Agreement. (b) If the Development Credit Agreement terminates in accordance with its terms before the date specified in paragraph (a) (ii) of this Section, the Association shall promptly notify West Bengal of this event. Section 4.03. All the provisions of this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect notwithstanding any cancellation or suspension under the General Conditions. -6- ARTICLE V Miscellaneous Provisions Section 5.01. Any notice or request required or permitted to be given or made under this Agreement and any agreement between the parties contemplated by this Agreement shall be in writing. Such notice or request shall be deemed to have been duly, given or made when it shall be delivered by hand or by mail, telegram, cable, telex or radiogram to the party to which it is required or permitted to be given or made at such party's address herein- after specified or at such other address as such party shall have designated by notice to the party giving such notice or making such request. The addresses so specified are: For the Association: International Development Association 1818 H Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20433 United States of America Cable address: INDEVAS Washington, D.C. For West Bengal: Chief Secretary Government of West Bengal Writers' Building Calcutta Cable address: CHIEFSEC Calcutta Section 5.02. Any action required or permitted to be taken, and any document required or permitted to be executed, under this Agreement on behalf of West Bengal may be taken or executed by the Chief Secretary or such other person or persons as West Bengal shall designate in writing, and West Bengal shall furnish to the Association sufficient evidence of the authority and the authenticated specimen signature of each such person. -7- Section 5.03. This Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be an original, and all collec- tively but one instrument. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto, acting through their representatives thereunto duly authorized, have caused this Agreement to be signed in their respective names in the District of Columbia, United States of America, as of the day and year first above written. INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION By Regional Vice President South Asia STATE OF WEST BENGAL By Authorized Representative -8- SCHEDULE Procurement A. General Procedures 1. Except as provided in paragraph 2 hereof, goods and civil works shall be bulked whenever practicable for economy and com- petition for their procurement and be procured on the basis of competitive bidding advertised locally under procedures satis- factory to the Association. 2. (a) Civil works, nursery works (including the production of seedlings), land preparation, planting and maintenance for village plantations and construction of stoves may be carried out by force account of SFW. (b) Design and supervision of housing and building construc- tion may be carried out by the Forestry Department or the Public Works Department of West Bengal. (c) Contracts for the purchase of research equipment and other miscellaneous equipment costing less than the equivalent of $20,000 each may be procured by prudent shopping through usual trade channels. B. Review of Procurement Decisions by the Association 1. Review, of invitations to bid and of proposed awards and final contracts: With respect to all contracts for goods and civil works estimated to cost the equivalent of $100,000 or more: (a) Before bids are invited, West Bengal shall furnish to the Association, for its comments, the text of the invitations to bid and the specifications and other bidding documents, to- gether with a description of the advertising procedures to be followed for the bidding, and shall make such modifications in the said documents or procedures as the Association shall reasonably request. Any further modification to the bidding documents shall require the Association's concurrence before they are issued to the prospective bidders. -9- (b) After bids have been received and evaluated, West Bengal shall, before a final decision on the award is made, inform the Association of the name of the bidder to which it intends to award the contract and shall furnish to the Association, in sufficient time for its review, a detailed report on the evealua- tion and comparison of the bids received, and such other informa- tion as the Association shall reasonably request. The Association shall, if it determines that the intended award would be inconsis- tent with the Guidelines or this Schedule, promptly inform West Bengal and state the reasons for such determination. (c) The terms and conditions of the contract shall not, without the Association's concurrence, materially differ from those on which bids were asked or prequalification invited. (d) Two conformed copies of the contract shall be furnished to the Association promptly after its execution and prior to the submission to the Association of the first application for withdrawal of funds from the Credit Account in respect of such contract. 2. With respect to each contract not governed by the preceding paragraph, West Bengal shall furnish to the Association, promptly after its execution and prior to the submission to the Association of the first application for withdrawal of funds from the Credit Account in respect of such contract, two conformed copies of such contract, together with the analysis of the respective bids, recommendations for award and such other information as the Association shall reasonably request. The Association shall, if it determines that the award of the contract was not consistent with this Schedule, promptly inform West Bengal and state the reasons for such determination. 3. Before agreeing to any material modification or waiver of the terms and conditions of a contract, or granting an exten- sion of the stipulated time for performance of such contract, or issuing any change order under such contract (except in cases of extreme urgency) which would increase the cost of the contract by more than 15% of the original price, West Bengal shall inform the Association of the proposed modification, waiver, extension or change order and the reasons therefor. The Association, if it determines that the proposal would be inconsistent with the provisions of this Agreement, shall promptly inform West Bengal and state the reasons for its determination. INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION CERTIFICATE I hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the original in the archives of the Interna- tional Development Association. In witness whereof I have signed this Certifi- cate and affixed the Seal of the Association thereunto the day of FOR* t-tRETARY