Village Defence Committee

Subject :Polity

Recently Lt Governor Manoj Sinha assured the Jammu and Kashmir people that they would get a Village Defence Committee (VDC).
People in Jammu and Kashmir are demanding that in the background of increasing militant attacks, they must be provided weapons to take on attackers.

Village Defence Committee (VDC):

The VDCs were first formed in the erstwhile Doda district (now Kishtwar, Doda and Ramban districts) in mid 1990s as a force multiplier against militant attacks. T
Then Jammu and Kashmir administration decided to provide residents of remote hilly villages with weapons and give them arms training to defend themselves.
The then Jammu and Kashmir administrations had decided to provide residents of remote hilly villages with weapons and give them arms training to defend their people and village.
The VDCs have now been renamed as the ‘Village Defence Guards (VDG)’.
It is set up in vulnerable areas of J&K and was approved by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.
Like a VDC member, each VDG will be provided with a gun and 100 rounds of ammunition.
It is a group of civilians provided with guns and ammunition to tackle militants in case of attack until the arrival of security forces.
The persons leading the VDGs will be paid Rs 4,500 per month by the government, while others will get Rs 4,000 each.
The VDGs will function under the direction of the SP/SSP of the district concerned.
Composition of VDCs
A minimum of 10-15 ex-servicemen, ex-policemen and able-bodied local youth were enrolled in each VDC voluntarily.
The VDCs also faced allegations of human rights violations and other crimes, including murder, rape and extortion.