France To Give 7 Lakh Euros For Railway Station Development In India
In a recent agreement with the French National Railways SNCF, French Development Agency AFD will give a grant of 7 lakh euros for the world-class infrastructural development of Indian railway stations.
The tripartite agreement (A tri-party agreement is a business deal between three separate parties. In the mortgage industry, a tri-party or tripartite agreement often takes place during the construction phase of a new home or condominium complex, to secure so-called bridge loans for the construction itself. In such cases, the loan contract involves the buyer, the lender, and the builder.) between the “three parties” are namely:
French National Railways SNCF: The Société nationale des Chemins de fer français is France’s national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938.
French Development Agency:) The Agence Française de Développement (AFD) funds, supports and accelerates the transitions to a fairer and more sustainable world. Focusing on climate, biodiversity, peace, education, urban development, health and governance, our teams carry out more than 4,000 projects in France’s overseas departments and territories and other 115 countries. In this way, we contribute to the commitment of France and French people to support the sustainable development goals
IRSDC: Indian Railway Station Development Corporation (Presently the authorized share capital of Indian Railway Station Development Corporation is Rs. 250 crores and the paid- up share capital is Rs. 51.60 crores.)
On Twitter, Ziegler said, “Just after the signing ceremony of an Indo-French agreement to support India’s modernisation of railways stations, @JBLemoyne (Lemoyne) met Shri @PiyushGoyal (Piyush Goyal) to discuss about the future of this cooperation! (sic)”
“Under this agreement, AFD, has agreed to provide in-kind grant financing up to 7,00,000 Euros, through SNCF-Hubs and Connexions as a Technical Partner to IRSDC to support capacity building for the Railway Station Development Program in India,” said a statement released by the Indian Railways.
The agreement was signed under the presence of:
- The Minister of State for Railways, Suresh Angadi
- Minister of State for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France, Jean Baptiste Lemyone
- Ambassador of France in India, Alexandre Ziegler and other senior officers of the French authorities and Indian Railways.
The ultimate aim of this agreement is to transform the current condition of Railway stations throughout the country to Airport like infrastructure. Stations which have been considered to have a makeover at first are: Chandigarh, Anand Vihar, Baiyyappanahalli, Surat, Shivaji Nagar, Sabarmati, Kanpur, Kanpur, Bijwasa, Sabarmati, Gwalior, Nagpur, Amritsar, Thakurli, Gandhinagar.
According to this financial years’ statement, Indian Railways plans to redevelop around 70+ stations throughout the country.
This will impose no financial liability on IRSDC or Indian Railways, the statement said.
“India and France have a strong and long standing prosperous partnership in the railway sector. French Railways (SNCF) in the past has been associated with Indian Railways in conducting speed upgradation study for Delhi-Chandigarh section and station development of Ludhiana and Ambala stations,” Angadi said.
“I am sure that this effort will go a long way in further strengthening Indo-French cooperation and will help Indian Railways in positioning its stations to world class standards,” he added.
However, this huge step of Infrastructural development brings in question the current scenario of the country and poverty at a glance.
