NEW DELHI: The government today said JICA has pledged an overseas development assistance (ODA) of 96,457 million (about Rs 5,700 crore) for strengthening the highways in North Eastern regions of the country."Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has pledged ODA loan of 96,457 million JPY (yen) in two tranches for widening and upgradation to 2-Lane with paved shoulder and geometric improvements of...NH-54 in Mizoram and NH-51 in Meghalaya ," Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Pon Radhakrishnan told Lok Sabha in a written reply today.Interest rates on the loan for construction works & procurement of goods & services are 1.4 per cent per annum and for consulting services is 0.01 per cent, he said.Re-payment of 'principal' will be made in 20 years after the disbursement period of 10 years, he added.Government has taken up various road improvement projects under Special Accelerated Road Development Programme for North East (SARDP-NE) for better connectivity in the entire region.In order to expedite road construction in the region, the government has set up the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited to augment the capacity of the agencies involved in the development and maintenance of NH in the Region."Further, the Ministry has adopted the Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) mode of contract for major NH works in the region, wherein the contractors are required to complete the work within a fixed cost and time," the Minister said.