HM Amit Shah reviews implementation of 'Vibrant Villages Programme'

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday reviewed the implementation of the 'Vibrant Villages Programme' at a high-level meeting here in the national capital and stressed the need to provide employment opportunities to local residents as well as increase connectivity to prevent migration from border villages.

Amit Shah further emphasized that the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Army deployed around the border villages should encourage the purchase of local agricultural and handicraft products through cooperatives, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a statement.

As per the MHA, Shah also focussed that the residents of the nearby villages should get the benefit of healthcare facilities available for the Army and CAPFs

The Home Minister also emphasized on maximum use of renewable energy sources like solar energy and windmills in vibrant villages, stated the MHA.

The Home Minister also mentioned that the Government of India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is committed to the all-round development of the border villages of the country.

Union Home Minister directed to "continue the efforts being made by senior ministers and officials to better understand the issues of border villages under the Vibrant Villages Programme."

So far, more than 6,000 events have been organized in these border villages, which include about 4,000 service delivery and awareness camps. More than 600 projects have been sanctioned by the Central government for employment generation in these villages.

During the meeting, the Home Minister laid special emphasis on "review at the highest level at regular intervals to dispose of pending issues."

The meeting was attended by senior officers of the Ministry of Home Affairs including the Union Home Secretary, Secretary, Border Management and Director General, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).

Under the 'Vibrant Villages Programme' scheme, 136 border villages are being provided connectivity through 113 all-weather road projects at a cost of Rs 2,420 crore.

As per the MHA, 4G connectivity is being worked on rapidly in these areas and by December 2024, all villages under the Vibrant Villages Programme will be covered by the 4G network. "Appropriate steps are being taken to ensure financial inclusion in all these villages and India Post-Payment Banks (IPPB) are also being facilitated there."

"Work is being done to develop tourist circuits to bring vibrancy to these Vibrant Villages and promote tourism. In this endeavour, capacity building and tourism-related infrastructure is being developed in coordination with the Ministry of Tourism," said the MHA.

Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this important and ambitious scheme was launched on 14th February 14, 2023, with an allocation of Rs 4,800 crore.

The Central government approved the Vibrant Villages Programme as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme on February 15, 2023, for the comprehensive development of the select villages in 46 blocks in 19 districts abutting the northern border in the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand and Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh.

The programme envisages focused areas of interventions in the select villages for the creation of opportunities for livelihood generation through the promotion of tourism and cultural heritage, skill development and entrepreneurship and the development of cooperative societies including agriculture and horticulture as well as cultivation of medicinal plants and herbs. The interventions also include providing road connectivity to unconnected villages, housing and village infrastructures, energy including renewable energy, television and telecom connectivity. The objective of the programme is to create sufficient incentives for people to stay on in the selected villages.

In all the census villages and towns, semi-urban and urban areas located with 0-10 km distance (aerial distance) from the first habitation at International Boundary (IB) in 16 states and 2 UTs abutting land borders, works and projects for identified gaps in essential infrastructure pertaining to road and bridges, health, Education, agriculture, sports, drinking water and sanitation, Anganwadi, community centre, small scale industries have been approved under the Border Area Development Programme (BADP).