"We expect to ramp up the level of borrowing from the current 1.2 billion dollars a year to about two billion dollars," Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram told reporters in New Delhi.

India's intention to increase borrowing "must be seen as a reflection of its strength not as a sign of weakness," the minister said.

"Cumulative disbursements under ADB's public sector projects up to December 2005 was 7.9 billion dollars of which energy, transport and communication accounted for more than 75 percent," of the funding, Chidambaram said.