FROM LAST TO FIRST, MANA VILLAGE NEAR LAC

By Our Correspondent

Villages like elsewhere in any country used to be left on their own, basically not getting much attention from the Government. More so was the case of villages in inaccessible interiors of the Indo China border in both the countries. In fact, not allowing the enemy with good roads and robust infrastructure was a sort of strategy at that time.

But suddenly, the whole scenario seems to have changed. With frequent incursions on the vast and largely open Indo-China border villages in such areas seem to have received attention unexpectedly. China has established a number of villages where there were few or even no inhabitants.  Contrary to some very isolated villages with few old residents in China, the new border villages have all basic as well as modern amenities.

Not to be left behind, India too has started modernising its border villages with infrastructures like roads and buildings in border states both in North and in North East. The finance minister in her budget has provided funds for such developmental work in remote frontier villages. The “Vibrant Village” scheme for about 3,000 border villages which was mentioned in Nirmala Sitharaman’s Budget speech in Parliament, focuses on developing villages in 46 border blocks across 19 districts, in Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, and Ladakh (UT) - located on the northern border.

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has recently placed a signboard at the border village of “Mana” in Uttarakhand, declaring it to be the “First Indian Village.” Located in the Himalayas, Mana shares a border with China and was previously referred to as the “last village”. The Chief minister Pushkar   Singh   Dhami on Monday shared  the pic of sign board saying “First Indian Village Mana”.(Source:Twitter/@ pushkardhami). This development came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi supported Dhami’s statement that “Mana was the first village of the country, and every border village should be the first village. 

Prior to this, Union Home Minister, Amit Shah launched the ‘Vibrant Villages Programme’ at Kibithu – a border village in Arunachal Pradesh. In his address, Shah said people’s approach towards border villages has changed and now people visiting the border area know it not as the last village but as the first village of India. The Vibrant Villages Programme to be implemented  in 3 phases, the goal of the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is  to  stop  migration from the villages of the entire northern border, to promote tourism and provide all facilities like cities, the minister said.

China has built over 600 villages across LAC in areas stretching from Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh in about a decade. Many of these villages are in proximity to strategically important positions on the Indian side. These villages mostly newly set up with all basic amenities and modern facilities.