WASHINGTON, April 15: India was among the first four countries to get a loan from the newly established BRICS New Development Bank which gave a USD 250 million funding to Canara Bank for a renewable energy project. The China-based NDB has approved four green renewable energy projects from India, China, Brazil and South Africa entailing Bank financing of USD 811 million. The project from India entails provisioning of a multi-tranche loan of USD 250 million to Canara Bank for lending to renewable energy ventures. The project will result in generation of 500 MWs of renewable energy and savings of about 800,000 tonnes of carbon emissions. "New Development Bank sanctioned 4 loans including a loan of USD 250 million for a renewable energy scheme in India. Good beginning," tweeted Shaktikanta Das, Secretary for Economic Affairs. This loan is the first such loan from the development financial institution, according to officials. The New Development Bank was formed by the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa)leadership with the objective of funding infrastructure projects in emerging economies and to meet the aspirations of hundreds of millions of people through sustainable development. The NDB which commenced operations in July, 2015, is headquartered in the eastern Chinese metropolis Shanghai and its initial authorised capital is USD 100 billion. -PTI