Within a week of China announcing “invented” names for 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh and calling the Indian State “southern part of Tibet”, Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited Kibithoo border village in Arunachal Pradesh on Monday in a clear message to Beijing.
Shah said no one can dare cast an evil eye on India’s territorial integrity and encroach even an “inch of our land.”
“The era is gone when anyone could encroach on our lands. Now, not even land equal to ‘sui ki noke’ (inch of land) can be encroached...,” Shah, who is on his first visit to the northeastern State as Union Home Minister, said at a public function after launching the ‘Vibrant Village’ programme in the border village of Kibithoo which is the country’s easternmost point.
Shah also said the Modi Government’s policy is to maintain peace with all countries but if anyone tries to occupy even an inch of India’s land the country would not tolerate it.
Shah, who will be in Arunachal Pradesh for two days, said no one can cast an evil eye on India because of the security forces who protect the country’s frontiers.
“In 1962, whoever came to encroach this land had to return because of the patriotic people living here,” he said while making a reference to the Chinese aggression in 1962.
Paying homage to the martyrs of Kibithoo who laid down their lives during the 1962 India-China war, Shah said they fought with indomitable spirit despite the lack of resources.
Shah said no one says “Namaste” in Arunachal Pradesh as people greet each other with “Jai Hind” that “fills our hearts with patriotism”. “It is because of this attitude of the Arunachalis that China which had come to occupy it had to retreat.”
He said enhanced facilities for border guarding troops of the ITBP and the Army will also be provided. “Our policy is that no one can challenge the honour of our borders and our forces.”
Shah also inaugurated, through video conferencing, nine micro hydel projects of the Arunachal Pradesh Government constructed under the “Golden Jubilee Border Illumination Programme” here.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu, Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein and local MP Tapir Gao were among those who were present on the occasion.
On other issues, Shah said the Modi Government has ended insurgency in the Northeast and brought peace and speedy development to the region.
Speaking about the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), Shah said the law was removed from about 70 per cent of the Northeastern states and the day “is not far” when it will be “entirely” lifted from these areas.
Referring to the ‘Vibrant Villages Programme’, Shah said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi the government of India has approved (VVP) which will bring all round development of border areas. As part of the programme, the Central Government will provide `4,800 crore, he added.
He said the objective of the programme is to stop the exodus of the people, develop them as tourist attractions, bring jobs and all round development.
Shah said that had such a programme been initiated 50 years ago, people would not have left the border villages.
The VVP is a centrally sponsored scheme under which 2,967 villages in 46 blocks of 19 districts abutting the northern border in the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh and UT of Ladakh have been identified for comprehensive development. In the first phase, 662 villages have been identified for priority on coverage, which includes 455 villages in Arunachal Pradesh.
Shah said border areas are the top priority of the Modi Government, pointing to the infrastructure and other development works carried out by his government in the Northeast.
He called this frontier location the “first village of India” and not the last, saying the Modi government has brought about a “conceptual” policy change to develop these areas and help the locals living here by providing basic amenities to them.
Earlier, people who returned from border areas used to say that they visited the last village of India but the Modi government has changed this narrative with people now saying that they visited the first village of India, Shah said. “Before 2014, the entire Northeastern region was seen as a disturbed area but because of the Look East policy, it is now known for its prosperity and development.”
The Minister said the ‘Vibrant Village’ scheme envisages that tap water, electricity, cooking gas, financial inclusion, digital and physical connectivity and employment opportunities are available in the remote border areas.
