The World Bank has promised to grant loans to the Indian city of Surat to help it combat the climate changes, said Mayor Ranjit Gilitwala.

Gilitwala said that Surat is one of the 10 cities chosen in the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network. The other cities are from Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand. Speaking to the Press, the mayor said "The World Bank promised aids to help all 10 cities fight climatic changes"

Gilitwala said that he presented projects on the work already done on climate variations by Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) and South Gujarat chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI).

He said "SMC made a presentation on disaster management and city development. The mayor of Durban city of South Africa, who was also present there was very impressed and expressed a desire to come visit our city soon. I have extended a formal invitation to him."

He also attended meetings with local leaders of Da Nang. He said that the situation in Da Nang was almost similar to that of Surat. The city too faced constants threats of flood since it was very close to the sea. Gilitwala said that they had studied how the city authorities coped with the floods.

Gilitwala said that out of the 10 cities chosen by the World Bank, Surat's civic body is the only one that has started work by forming five study groups which include 100 experts on various fields. The reports generated by these groups would help in deciding the steps to be adopted to fight climate changes. . SMC has also formed a city advisory committee to know the affects of climate changes on water security, flood scare, energy, health and environment.

World bank is also helping India In faster recovery from the global crisis. World Bank, extended its support to India by approving loans worth $4.3 billion. The loans would enable financing infrastructure development in the country and in supporting some of the state-run banks.