Village Defence Guards Explained

Agencyname:Village Defence Guards
Nativename:Village Defence Committees
Abbreviation:VDGs
Formedyear:1996
Country:India
Divtype:Union territory
Divname:Jammu and Kashmir
Governingbody:Jammu and Kashmir Police
Police:Yes
Local:Yes
Speciality1:Anti-militancy operations
Sworntype:Defence Guards
Minister1name:Amit Shah
Minister1pfo:Ministry of Home Affairs
Chief1name:Dilbagh Singh,[1] [2] IPS
Chief1position:Director General of Police
Parentagency:Government of Jammu & Kashmir
Officetype:Districts
Activity1name:Patrolling,
Area Domination,
Surveillance[3]
Activitytype:Village Defence

Village Defence Guards (VDGs) formerly known as Village Defence Committees is a civilian militia first established in the mid-1990s in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir for the self-defence of locals, especially Hindus and vulnerable Muslims, in remote hilly villages against militancy. It consist of villagers as well as police officers.[4]

VDGs are specifically trained to confront the terrorists who regularly infiltrate from Pakistan. This militia has effectively supplied crucial information to the police, thwarting potential acts of mayhem by these terrorists.

As recently as 2019, the Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) set up new VDCs in Kishtwar district, which has over 3,251 VDC members out of which 800 are armed. In Jammu and Kashmir, there were 4,125 VDCs as of December 2019.[5] The Indian Army conducts training camps for VDCs consisting of weapons training and intelligence gathering basics. On 15 September 2019, the Army trained VDCs in Doda sector.[6] They were mainly set up to protect Hindus and Muslims.[7] [8] Following the killing of a Kashmiri-Hindu Sarpanch in June 2020, former Director General (DGP) of Jammu and Kashmir Police said Shesh Paul Vaid that Hindus and Muslims could be armed and Village Defence Committees could be set up with proper planning. As of 28 February 2023, there are over 100 men armed and provided weapons training in Dhangri, Rajouri.[9] The first VDC was set up under Shesh Paul Vaid when he was a Superintendent of Police (SP) in Bagankote village, Udhampur district (now Reasi district) in 1995.

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: SP Vaid Removed As Jammu And Kashmir Police Chief. NDTV.com. 2018-09-06.
  2. News: Jammu and Kashmir police chief SP Vaid removed, Director General of Prisons Dilbagh Singh to take over. 2018-09-06. The Financial Express. 2018-09-06. en-US.
  3. News: Doda Police Briefs Heads of VDGS About Their Charter of Duties. 7 January 2023. The Chenab Times. 7 January 2023.
  4. Web site: Sharma. Arun. 2019-07-17. J&K cops overhaul village defence committees, PDP says Centre design to arm RSS workers. 2020-06-16. The Indian Express. en.
  5. Web site: 5 December 2019. J&K village defence committees protest over pending salaries in Jammu, seek L-G GC Murmu's intervention. 2020-06-16. Firstpost.
  6. News: 15 September 2019. Indian Army organises training sessions for village defence committees in J-K. 2020-06-16. ANI News. en.
  7. News: Press Trust of India. 2019-07-21. J-K: Police to revamp village defence committees to curb terrorism. Business Standard India. 2020-06-16.
  8. News: Bhat. Sunil. 13 June 2020. Give arms training, weapons to minority Hindus, vulnerable Muslims in Kashmir: Former J&K DGP Vaid. 2020-06-16. India Today. en.
  9. Web site: 2023-02-28 . India revives civil militia after 7 Hindus were killed in disputed region of Kashmir . 2023-03-02 . Associated Press . en-US.