As many as 51 villages of Uttarakhand along the international borders, mainly China, will be developed under the central government’s “Vibrant Village Programme”. These villages will be developed in the first phase of the scheme.

The Centre’s impetus to the scheme resulted from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to the Kumaon, in which he had attacked previous governments for not paying heed to develop border areas and claimed that it will be done by his government. This was brought to the fore in a meeting of the officials from the four India-China border states – Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, and Arunachal Pradesh –with the Union home secretary, Ajay Kumar Bhalla.

During discussion with Bhalla, the Uttarakhand representative and additional chief secretary, Radha Raturi, informed that the state government has been preparing an action plan for the development of border villages under the Centre’s Vibrant Village Programme and the plan was on the verge of completion. She also said it will likely be sent to the Centre by October 23.

Raturi asked Bhalla to allow states to have access to the central government portal on Vibrant Village Programme so that action plans and other measures could be easily taken for the development of border areas. Raturi stated that getting access to the central portal will also help state governments complete their development project reports and plans in time.

She urged the Union home secretary that the Centre must take steps to ensure local purchasing must be done from the villages located along the Chinese border by the Indo-Tibet Border Police (ITBP) and Indian Army deployed there. She claimed that it will improve the local population’s livelihoods, enhance the local economy, and prevent migration from border villages.

In his reply to Ratur’s demands, Bhalla assured her that the Centre will take positive steps in this direction. He asked Raturi to send the action plan for 51 border villages before October 23. Bhalla told her that her request for access to the Union government portals and local purchasing by the armed forces units will also be considered positively.

It may be noted that the central government has identified 2,967 villages of 46 blocks in 19 districts along northern borders to be developed under the Vibrant Village Programme. Nearly 662 of these villages have been prioritized for the development in the first phase. This includes 455 villages in Arunachal Pradesh, 75 in Himachal Pradesh, 35 in Ladakh, 46 in Sikkim, and 51 border villages in Uttarakhand.