THE second phase of Vibrant Villages Programme (VVP), which envisages comprehensive development of select villages located along international borders, has been approved by the Union Cabinet, the Government announced on Friday. The Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the Vibrant Villages Programme-II (VVP-II) as a central sector scheme with 100 per cent funding by the Centre, furthering its commitment for the vision of Viksit Bharat@2047 for ‘Safe, Secured & Vibrant land borders’, an official statement said.

 

The programme would help in the comprehensive development of the villages located in the blocks abutting international land borders (ILBs), other than the northern border already covered under VVP-I. The objective of the programme is to create better living conditions and adequate livelihood opportunities to ensure prosperous and safe borders, control trans-border crime and assimilate the border population with the nation and inculcate them ‘as eyes and ears of the border guarding forces’, crucial for internal security.

 

With a total outlay of Rs 6,839 crore, the programme shall be implemented in select strategic villages in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal till 2028-29, the statement said.

 

The programme shall provide funds for infrastructure development within the village or a cluster of villages, value chaindevelopment through cooperatives, SHGs, etc, border specificoutreach activity, educationinfrastructure like SMART classes, development of tourism circuits and projects to creatediverse and sustainable livelihood opportunities in the border areas. The interventionswould be border-specific, stateand village specific, based on village action plans prepared in acollaborative approach. All-weather road connectivityfor these villages shall be undertaken under the alreadyapproved Rural connectivityunder PM Gram Sadak Yojana(PMGSY-IV). A high-poweredcommittee chaired by theCabinet Secretary shall consider suitable relaxations in guidelines for effective implementation of schemes in the borderareas.