New Delhi: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday approved a 1.5 billion dollar loan to India to help fund its response to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

This includes support for immediate priorities like disease containment and prevention as well as social protection for the poor and economically vulnerable sections of the society, especially women and disadvantaged groups.

“ADB is fully committed to supporting India in its response to this unprecedented challenge,” said ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa. The quick-disbursing fund is part of a larger package of support that ADB will provide in close coordination with the government and other development partners.

“We are determined to support India’s COVID-19 response programmes and ensure that they provide effective support to the people of India, especially the poor and vulnerable,” said Asakawa in a statement.

ADB’s COVID-19 Active Response and Expenditure Support (CARES) Programme will contribute directly to the improvement of access to health facilities and care as well as social protection for more than 800 million people, including families below the poverty line, farmers, health care workers, women, senior citizens, people with disabilities, low wage earners, and construction workers.

The CARES Programme is funded through the COVID-19 pandemic response option (CPRO) under ADB’s Counter-cyclical Support Facility. CPRO was established as part of ADB’s 20 billion dollars expanded assistance for developing member countries’ COVID-19 response which was announced on April 13.

ADB said India has taken proactive and decisive measures to contain COVID-19 to protect lives including the implementation of social distancing, community quarantine, and testing and tracking.

The government’s COVID-19 response programme includes a 2 billion dollar health sector project to rapidly ramp up test-track-treatment capacity and a 23 billion dollar pro-poor relief package which will provide additional social protection measures targeting the poor, women, vulnerable population and disadvantaged groups.

Insurance coverage for all types of health workers engaged in the COVID-19 response is also included. Around 65 per cent of the package is in the form of direct social assistance and protection to the poor and vulnerable, including women. (ANI)