Arunachal: Amit Shah launches Vibrant Villages Programme in Kibithoo, CM Pema Khandu applauds

In a bid to promote development and improve living conditions in India's border villages, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday launched the 'Vibrant Villages Programme' (VVP) at Kibithoo, a remote border village in the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which shares a border with China.

Shah, who was accompanied by Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu, inaugurated nine micro hydel projects of the Arunachal Pradesh government and 14 infrastructure projects of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) worth Rs 120 crore, in the presence of Union Home Secretary, ITBP Director General, and other dignitaries.

During his address, Shah said that the VVP will help to ensure that every person living in border villages has access to basic amenities and will provide economic opportunities to promote financial inclusion. The programme aims to develop more than 450 border villages, which were earlier part of the Border Area Development Programme (BADP), but have now been restructured and renamed as the Vibrant Villages Programme.

In Arunachal Pradesh, 2967 villages have been identified for comprehensive development in 46 blocks of 19 districts along the northern border, including Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and the Union Territory of Ladakh. In the first phase of the programme, about 1.42 lakh population will be covered in 662 villages across 46 blocks, with a budget of Rs 4800 crore from 2022 to 2026.

Under the VVP, the Indian government will take care of the facilities of every person living in the villages, and the benefits of various schemes will be delivered to the people. The development work of villages will be done at three levels, with the aim of ensuring that not a single house in the border villages lacks basic amenities.

In his speech, Chief Minister Khandu said that the programme will develop border towns along the northern border states of India while preserving and promoting local culture, language and tourism. He also explained that the VVP, which is a redesigned and restructured version of the BADP, will cover 11 districts, 28 blocks, and 1451 villages in the first phase.