WASHINGTON, April 8 (Reuters) - The World Bank's private-sector lender, the International Finance Corp, on Tuesday approved $450 million in funding for a 4,000 megawatt coal-fired power plant in India.

"IFC today received approval from its board of directors to invest in Coastal Gujarat Power Ltd's Tata Mundra project, helping expand access to electricity in five states of western and northern India," IFC said in a statement.

The funding was unanimously supported by board members, despite calls by environmental groups to delay a decision until further evaluation on costs and environmental impact from coal was conducted. The groups argued that IFC's funding should support clean energy alternatives for power. (Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; editing by Diane Craft)