ADB gives India $100mn loan for futures mkt

With futures market gaining acceptance in India and more than 100 commodities being traded in it, the Asian Development Bank has decided to give a $100 million loan for its development.

The multilateral funding agency would provide this loan over four years for development of the futures market, besides providing a grant of $4 million to the consumer affairs ministry for its preparatory work, its secretary L Mansingh said here.

The loan will be utilised for human resources development and setting up of infrastructure support in India, he said.

Mansingh said the WTO regime necessitated stringent quality norms for agri exports and it would be imperative for India to have specialised cold storages and other support to become a global player.

He forecast a two year period for strengthening of the basic support system in the country to enable high agri exports.

Mansingh said India should take a leaf out of the chapter of countries like China, which have a very transparent and expeditious export-import policy that has benefited the farm sector.