Team Blitz India
The Union Home Ministry has sanctioned 113 roads under the Vibrant Village Programme (VVP) in Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Sikkim to improve connectivity in areas along the China border.
While 105 roads have been sanctioned in Arunachal Pradesh, five roads in Uttarakhand and three roads in Sikkim have also been approved. The government is likely to spend over ₹2 crore on each kilometre of road to be constructed under the VVP.
There are at least 168 villages along the border with China that do not have any road connectivity. According to the MHA’s sanction letter, 43.96 km of roads are to be built a cost of ₹119 crore at Pithoragarh district in Uttarakhand. Each kilometre of road is expected to cost ₹2.7 crore. After construction, the roads will be maintained by the State government.
In Sikkim, around 18.73 km of roads and 350 metres of steel bridges have been sanctioned under the VVP at the Chungthang and Mangan block in north Sikkim at a cost of ₹96 crore. Each kilometre of road construction will cost ₹2.4 crore.
The Ministry has also asked State governments to monitor construction activity by installing GPS-enabled vehicle tracking devices. “States shall ensure the installation of GPS system in key machinery and equipment engaged during execution of road works under VVP,” the MHA said in a communication sent to the Uttarakhand government.
The objectives
The Union Cabinet approved the VVP programme on February 15, 2023 to cover 2,967 villages in 46 border blocks of 19 districts in Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, and Ladakh. One of the stated objectives of the VVP is to stop migration in the population residing along the border.
Around 68% of the total villages that will be covered in the first phase of VVP are in Arunachal Pradesh. The number of villages that will benefit from the scheme in Ladakh are 35, while 75 villages in Himachal Pradesh, 46 villages in Sikkim, and 51 villages in Uttarakhand have been identified.
