India to Spend ₹2 Crore Per Km on China Border Roads

May 13, 2024

The Vibrant Village Program (VVP), which was approved by the government on February 15, 2023, wants to improve infrastructure and settlement stability along the border between India and China. The goal of this project is to improve the lives of people in 2,967 villages spread out over 46 border blocks in 19 districts in Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, and Ladakh. The main goal of the VVP is to keep people from leaving border towns, raise living standards, and improve border security by keeping a populated frontline.

Road Construction under VVP

Building and improving road connections will take up a big chunk of the VVP’s ₹4,800 crore spending over three years. There are currently 113 roads approved by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The biggest projects are in Arunachal Pradesh (105 roads), Uttarakhand (5 roads), and Sikkim (3 roads). The building project includes building roads and steel bridges. The expected cost per kilometre is ₹2 crore, which shows that a lot of money is being spent on infrastructure to make sure strong connectivity.

Project Specifics

Uttarakhand Pithoragarh Project:

Location: Pithoragarh district, Uttarakhand, India.
Total Road Length: 43.96 km.
Total Cost: ₹119 crore.
Cost Per Kilometer: Approximately ₹2.71 crore.

Sikkim Chungthang-Mangan Project:

Location: Chungthang and Mangan blocks, Sikkim, India.
Total Road Length and Bridges: 18.73 km of roads plus 350 meters of steel bridges.
Total Cost: ₹96 crore.
Cost Per Kilometer: Approximately ₹5.03 crore.

Strategic Considerations

India is building more infrastructure under the VVP as part of a larger strategic reaction to China building “moderately prosperous” Xiaokang villages along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), especially in areas that face Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh. India wants to strengthen its border areas by making it easier for people to make a living and by making it easier to keep an eye on things and control the border.

What is the Vibrant Village Programme (VVP)?

The Indian government started the Vibrant Village Program (VVP) to bring border towns that are falling behind on development back to life while making sure they have access to basic services like healthcare, education, and internet. The VVP is mostly interested in border towns with few people, like those in Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh. In order to keep people from leaving these areas, the program builds physical and digital infrastructure, makes the borders safer, and helps the native people make a living, which improves the general social and economic situation in the border areas.

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