Notwithstanding the opposition for the Rs 1,00,000-crore Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train from farmers and now from Godrej Group against land acquisition, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is bullish over funding the project. However, the Japanese government agency suggested that the Central and state governments will have to carry out due process of land acquisition, provide enough information to land owners and negotiate land price based on the prevailing market rate to kick start the project. JICA's chief representative in India Katsuo Matsumoto said, "We have done our own environmental gatherings and request counterpart agencies to look into our inputs. We expect central and state governments to follow due process. We are currently negotiating terms of JICA finance with the government." The JICA hoped that the present issues are addressed so that the bullet train project will be completed by 2023. Matsumoto was speaking on the sidelines of a function organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry. Matsumoto said that JICA will provide finance to transport, power, water supply, agriculture and education as part of India and Japan strategic partnership. He informed that JICA had provided first loan to India in 1958 and in the past 60 years has provided finance to 250 infrastructure projects. ''In 2017-18, JICA has provided finance worth $4 billion to various projects including metro rail in Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Gujarat and Mumbai. Besides, we have financed environment protection projects,'' he said. Matsumoto revealed that JICA has developed policy action based loan exclusively for India. Matsumoto cited the quality of detail project report is quite important and the central and state governments will have to prepare good quality DPRs. "Besides, the decision making process and grant of approvals will have to be streamlined," he said.

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