Vijay Singh Bali
After the recent targeted killing in the upper Dhangri village of Rajouri, people raised demands for the establishment of Village Defense Guards (VDGs) in the Rajouri district. Within a short period, the Government organized a weapons distribution camp, once again highlighting the crucial role of VDGs. The Village Defense Guards (VDGs) earlier known as Village Defense Committees (VDCs) are based on the concept of ‘Community Based Security Group” (CBSG) constituted in 1955 to act as force multiplier against the terror attacks in hilly areas of Chenab region and protecting mainly the hindu community.
The CBSG refers to a local organization or initiative formed by members of a community to address security concerns and maintain safety within that community rather than totally depending on the state forces and instilling a attitude of self protection among the citizens in security matters .It was first constituted in the erstwhile district of Doda after the massacre of 13 people in Kishtwar.
According to Jammu and Kashmir Government the ‘ aim of the Village Defense Guards Scheme (VDGs) is to organize a small group of volunteer armed civilians in the identified villages along the borders as well as in-depth areas of the Jammu division, with a view to instill sense of self protection and ensure the safety and security of such’ villages, infrastructural installations in and around them and to check the trans-border movement’.
The need for VDGs came into picture when insurgency in Kashmir during 1990s was at its peak due to proxy war led by Pakistan ,as it had already led a successful proxy war in Afghanistan which resulted in disintegration of USSR and it was replicating the same model in Kashmir ,but didn’t succeed in it and big credit goes to police and the security forces .
Composition and Control
Under the new order in 2022 ,Home Department will identify the ‘most vulnerable villages’ and on voluntary basis, a group of more than 15 persons (V2Category)will be selected as Village Defense Guards headed by retired police/ army/ capf/ personal (V1 Category).Those persons leading the V1 category shall be paid 4500 and those in V2 category shall be paid 4000 monthly, whereas earlier ,they were not paid any monetary benefits and a big credit goes to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi .
The VDGs will function under the direction of Senior Superintendence of Police of the District who will have the executive power over the VDGs
Role Played by VDGs
VDCs were mainly drawn from the local area who were well versed with the geography of the particular area that helped them in deterring terrorists as security forces were not able to reach on time due to poor roads connectivity in the hilly areas.
The major factor for minimum ‘ forced migration’ of hindu community in Chenab belt during 1990s period was due to VDGs ,as it created fear and deterrence among the terrorists .
It has become the ‘Eyes and ears of JKP’ by passing the critical information about terrorist hide outs .
VDGs have the responsibility of protecting community installations and infrastructures in the defined area thus complementing the role of Police.
Survellience of cross border movement .
Challenges
The primary challenge that VDGs are facing is the lack of proper training ,they hardly get training required for fighting the terrorists and it is sad to see that majority of VDGs can’t even fire properly at the target
Secondly, it has been seen that those people who are in government jobs have registered these weapons on the names of their wives for the monthly monetary benefits with the involvement of local police officers ,irony is that majority of these women have never used or lifted the guns,which kills itself the dream of creating VDGs
Thirdly, the use of weapons for murder, personal rivalry, human rights violations etc, as can be seen from the fact that more than 300 cases have been registered during 1990s of VDGs
Fourthly, the weapon used mainly by these VDGs is 303 rifles, ,its quality is not sufficient to modern needs whereas the terrorists have high quality weapons in the form of AK47,
Fifthly , the flawed policy of government and the lack of clarity about the roles of VDGs.
The Pakistan is creating a new front of asymmetrical warfare In the Poonch-Rajouri sector as can be seen from the recent terrorist attacks in the districts ,thus the challenges for security forces are further going to increase in different forms ranging from information warfare to drug trafficking, therefore the role that VDGs are going to play is very crucial in maintaining the law and order situation the region
The author is PG student of Department of Strategic and Regional Studies (DSRS), JU
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