Boost border infrastructure in Ladakh: Parliament panel to govt

Stating that some border area and villages of Ladakh have not been covered under the latest Border Area Development Programme (BADP) scheme, the Parliamentary committee headed by Rajya Sabha MP Anand Sharma in its 235th report asked the government to take all necessary steps so that all border areas come under the BADP scheme.

New Delhi: Being aware of the ongoing border skirmish with China, a Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs has suggested to the central government to boost up border infrastructure in Ladakh.

Stating that some border area and villages of Ladakh have not been covered under the latest Border Area Development Programme (BADP) scheme, the Parliamentary committee headed by Rajya Sabha MP Anand Sharma in its 235th report asked the government to take all necessary steps so that all border areas come under the BADP scheme.

"The committee recommends that MHA may take up the matter to include all border areas of Ladakh including hamlets and other barren lands with small population as per the revised BADP guidelines so that they get benefits of scheme under BADP," the committee said in its report.

The committee notes that the revised BADP guidelines have been framed in the year 2020 which intends to cover 0-50 km area from the zero line.

The committee notes that out of the total 236 habitats, 172 villages have telecom infrastructure and only 24 and 78 villages have 3G and 4G internet connectivity.

"The committee understands the importance of proper communication facilities including internet has grown considerably over years and has taken centre-stage during the Covid19 pandemic when students have been receiving education through online mode due to closure of schools," it said.

The committee also recommends to electrify all villages in Ladakh particularity, the villages that are located in Zero-border like Chumar and Demchuk in order to stop migration of people from these areas.

"This will go a long way in fulfilling the developmental needs of these remote yet strategically important localities."

However, in its action taken report, the Home Ministry said that as per the latest BADP guidelines, issued in March 2020, the scheme covers all habitations situated between 0-10 kms from international boundary.

"The guidelines also envisage page-wise extension of coverage beyond 10 km, once the villages within 10 km are saturated," the home ministry said.

Referring to the issue of providing connectivity and telecommunication facilities, the home ministry said that the list of border villages has been shared with DoT to provide telecom infrastructure.

"The list covers 14,708 border villages with their local government directory (LGD) codes. For remaining 1860 border villages, efforts are being taken to provide the LGD codes in consultation with the concerned stakeholders," the MHA said.