Agartala: In a significant move aimed at bolstering border security and fostering development in the region, the Union Cabinet, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today approved the Vibrant Villages Programme – II (VVP-II) encompassing Tripura and the remaining states of the North East.
This Central Sector Scheme underscores the government’s unwavering commitment to realizing the vision of a Viksit Bharat@2047, specifically focusing on establishing ‘Safe, Secured & Vibrant land borders’ across the nation.
The newly approved programme is designed to facilitate comprehensive progress in villages situated within the blocks adjacent to international land borders (ILBs), extending beyond the Northern border areas already addressed under the initial phase of the Vibrant Villages Programme (VVP-I).
With a substantial financial commitment of Rs. 6,839 crore, the initiative will be rolled out in strategically selected villages across Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura, with the implementation period extending until the financial year 2028-29.
Beyond the North Eastern region, the Vibrant Villages Programme – II will also extend its reach to select border villages in Bihar, Gujarat, the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the Union Territory of Ladakh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.
According to an official report, the core objective of the programme is to elevate living standards and generate adequate livelihood opportunities for the residents of these border villages, thereby ensuring prosperous and secure borders. This initiative also seeks to curb cross-border criminal activities and effectively integrate the border population into the national fabric, nurturing them as invaluable ‘eyes and ears of the border guarding forces’, a crucial element for strengthening internal security.
The programme will allocate funds for critical infrastructure development within the identified villages or clusters of villages. Furthermore, it will support value chain development through the promotion of cooperatives and Self-Help Groups (SHGs), facilitate border-specific outreach activities, enhance education infrastructure through initiatives like SMART classes, promote the development of tourism circuits, and undertake various projects aimed at creating diverse and sustainable livelihood opportunities in these strategically important border areas.
The report further emphasized that all interventions under the programme will be meticulously tailored to the specific needs of each border, state, and village, based on collaboratively developed Village Action Plans.
Crucially, all-weather road connectivity for these identified villages will be prioritized under the already sanctioned PM Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-IV, overseen by the Ministry of Rural Development. To ensure the effective implementation of various schemes in these border areas, a High-Powered Committee, chaired by the Cabinet Secretary, will be authorized to consider suitable relaxations in existing schematic guidelines.
The Vibrant Villages Programme – II aims to achieve saturation in the reach of existing individual and household level welfare schemes within the identified villages through strategic convergence, adhering to established scheme norms. Additionally, the programme has set its sights on achieving complete saturation across all villages within these border blocks in four key thematic areas: all-weather road connectivity, telecom connectivity, television connectivity, and electrification, leveraging convergence with existing government schemes.
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