• The Union Cabinet approved a Rs 4,800 crore allocation for the Vibrant Villages Programme (VVP), a centrally sponsored scheme, to ensure the comprehensive development of villages along the northern border areas.

• The financial allocation for 2022-23 to 2025-26 was approved at a meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and will include Rs 2,500 crore for the development of roads infrastructure.

• The scheme will provide funds for the development of essential infrastructure and the creation of livelihood opportunities in 19 districts and 46 border blocks in four states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and the Union Territory of Ladakh along the northern land border of the country.

• The programme was announced in the Union Budget 2022-23.

Significance of the scheme

• The comprehensive development of villages along the northern border will improve the quality of life of people living there and help in encouraging them to stay in their native locations in these areas, thereby reversing the out-migration and adding to improved security of the border.

• The Vibrant Villages Programme has been formulated as a centrally sponsored scheme and will have both components of central sector schemes with 100 percent direct funding as well as central sponsored schemes in ten sectors like economic growth, livelihood generation, road connectivity, energy, development of cooperative sectors for 24x7 electricity and water, besides promotion of tourism of culture.

• Tourist centres, multi-purpose centres and health and wellness centres will also be set up.

• The existing schemes of various ministries and departments of the government will be covered under VVP and their outcomes will be defined and monitored on a constant basis. However, there will not be an overlap with the Border Area Development Programme.

• The villages will be developed as growth centres on the basis of the ‘hub-and-spoke model’ through the promotion of entrepreneurship and empowerment of youth and women through skill development programmes.

• The scheme aims to identify and develop the economic drivers based on local natural human and other resources of villages on the northern border and will look at the traditional knowledge, heritage and development of sustainable eco agri-businesses on the concept of one village, one product.

• This will be done through the involvement of community cooperative self-help groups and non-government organisations and agriculture societies.

• The vibrant village action plans will be created by the district administration with the help of gram panchayats. A 100 per cent saturation of central and state schemes will be ensured.

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