E-Paper
Vibrant Village programme: Delay in funds hampers development in Himachal along China border areas
Additionally, the state has faced a budgetary shortfall of three years under the Border Area Development Programme (BADP), impeding progress in various villages along the borders
In a setback to Himachal Pradesh’s development initiatives, the Central government is yet to release funds for the Vibrant Village programme. Consequently, essential development projects in the border regions remain incomplete. Additionally, the state has faced a budgetary shortfall of three years under the Border Area Development Programme (BADP), impeding progress in various villages along the borders.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sanctioned ₹4,800 crore in the Union budget for the ‘Vibrant Villages programme’. The Centre started the programme on February 17, 2023. Of the total outlay, ₹2,500 crore will be spent on the creation of road infrastructure in the border areas. Recently, Union energy minister RK Singh visited Kinnaur’s border villages along with Himachal CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. But the Centre is yet to release the grant.
Initially launched to drive development in border villages, the BADP was replaced by the Vibrant Village programme by the Modi government
Despite promises of funds worth ₹4,000 crore for 3,900 villages across the nation, Himachal Pradesh has not received any financial support, leaving critical projects like road infrastructure, drinking water systems, and irrigation schemes in limbo.
Himachal’s revenue and tribal development minister Jagat Singh Negi has expressed concerns over the situation. He highlighted that despite the Central government’s commitment to allocate ₹100 crore for Kalpa and Pooh regions under the BADP, the lack of funding has hindered progress. Moreover, instead of disbursing funds, Central ministers have focused on visiting vibrant villages.
The delayed development in border areas has raised security concerns, particularly in light of China’s rapid infrastructure growth in its own border regions. China’s aggressive development includes a network of roads and railways, posing potential risks to the security of India’s border regions.
Notably, in Kinnaur district, people are barred from approaching the border with China, with restrictions set 20 to 70 km from the border. In contrast, similar restrictions do not apply from the Chinese side. To counter this, Negi has urged the Central government to allow people to access areas up to 3 km from the border. He emphasised that such access would benefit both the farming community and tourism in the region.
Additionally, the need for alternative road routes in tribal areas has become apparent due to the heavy reliance on NH-5, which frequently faces blockages. Negi stressed the importance of developing alternative routes to alleviate this issue.
Communication infrastructure in border areas also remains a concern, with mobile towers covering less than 3 km and weak signals necessitating people to ascend rooftops to ensure connectivity.
In light of these challenges, the state of Himachal Pradesh seeks urgent attention from the Central government to fulfil its commitments, allocate funds for development projects, and bolster the region’s overall growth.
