Couples enter wedlock under VDG protection

Jammu, August 4
As Zail Singh and Ravita Devi entered the wedlock in a remote village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda, Village Defence Guards (VDGs) stood near them to ward off any threat from terrorists, who have infiltrated from across the border and are believed to be hiding in the higher reaches of the district.
Hailing from Gadan village in Bhagwah Panchayat, Singh, who is in his mid-20s, performed the wedding rituals with Devi as per the already decided dates last week despite his area witnessing a fierce gunfight between terrorists and security forces for several hours on July 9.
Doda has been rocked by several terrorist incidents since June 12 that have been seen as an attempt by Pakistan-based terror handlers to revive terrorism in the district after remaining peaceful for over 18 years. On July 15, an Army search party was attacked in Dessa forest that left four soldiers, including a Captain, dead.
“The back-to-back terror attacks have caused panic among people. This is a wedding season so we are coming forward to ensure that people celebrate their important occasions without the shadow of terror,” said the 55-year-old VDG member and resident of Gadan village, Bharat Singh. He said the VDGs had provided security for a few marriage ceremonies in the village and adjoining areas and would be doing so for several other functions as “people felt safe” in their presence.
Besides the deadly encounter in the Dessa forest, the terrorists also injured at least 10 security personnel in separate attacks at Chattergalla Pass, Gandoh, Kastigarh and the Ghadi Bagwah forest between June 12 and July 18. Three terrorists were killed in a day-long operation in the Gandoh area of the district on June 26, while the search is on to neutralise other splinter groups hiding in the dense forests.
The VDG member said Zail Singh’s father Karan Singh was a Special Police Officer (SPO) so the threat from terrorists was felt more for this function. “We not only provided protection to the family in the village but also accompanied the ‘baarat’ till Deoli village en route to Koti. We returned from halfway after another VDG party took over the charge,” he said.
Recalling the past terror attacks on villagers in the district between 1995 and 2006 that claimed a number of lives, Bharat said the VDGs, who were earlier known as Village Defence Committees (VDCs), were protecting their villages round-the-clock and had voluntarily come forward to provide protection to families celebrating marriage of their children. In 2022, the policy of VDCs was revamped by the Home Ministry and Village Defence Groups were introduced, and their members were called Village Defence Guards. Not only the name, but the structure of the committees was also changed. All VDGs are also paid.
According to the annual report of the Ministry of Home Affairs for 2022-23, 4,153 Village Defence Groups and 32,355 SPOs were engaged in J&K in different responsibilities for the protection of civilians and carrying out anti-terrorists operations under the direct supervision of district Superintendents of Police or Senior Superintendents of Police.
However, Singh said they were still waiting for replacement of their .303 rifles and monthly remunerations. “We have been given more members after the recent encounters (with terrorists) and report our duties to the police,” he said, adding that the presence of terrorists meant loss of earning opportunities for them as they “mostly worked as labourers” and the challenging situation did not let them leave their areas unprotected. — PTI

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