NEW DELHI: Home Minister Amit Shah is reaching Arunachal Pradesh on Monday to launch a ‘Vibrant Village Programme’ in Anjaw district’s Kibithoo, a strategically important location for India. The Home Minister will be in Arunachal for two days.
The programme, sources said, is aimed at stopping people from moving out of the villages located near the Line of Actual Control. This event of the Home Minister comes within days the Chinese act of renaming 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh, which includes mountain peaks, rivers and places inhabited by people. India has rejected China’s claim and stated Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of it.
The Centrally-sponsored scheme, ‘Vibrant Villages Programme’, was approved for comprehensive development of villages in 46 border blocks of 19 districts in four States and one Union territory— Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand and Ladakh (UT) abutting the northern border. A fund of Rs 4,800 crore has been allocated for the programme for the period between 2022-23 and 2025-26.
The programme will cover a total of 2,967 villages, of which 662 border villages have been identified for comprehensive development on priority under the programme. State-wise number of villages are as follows: Arunachal Pradesh- 455, Himachal Pradesh- 75, Ladakh (UT)- 35, Sikkim- 46 and Uttarakhand-51. Under the programme, the focus will be on better road connectivity, supply of drinking water, 24X7 electricity supplies, including solar and wind energy, mobile and internet connectivity, tourist centres, multi-purpose centres, healthcare infrastructure and wellness centers. Shah will also inaugurate nine micro hydel projects in Arunachal Pradesh, constructed under the ‘Golden Jubilee Border Illumination Programme; in Kibithoo.