Leh, April 21: Secretary, Youth Services & Sports, Ladakh Ravinder Kumar chaired a meeting to discuss issues of National Cadet Corps (NCC) viz. expansion of NCC camps, preparation for the upcoming Vibrant Village Programme; status of hostels, amongst others.

At the outset, Commanding Officer, 1 Ladakh Battalion NCC Leh, Col VS Johar briefed the meeting on the status of the expansion of NCC camps in Leh and Kargil. There are 16 schools and colleges covered so far in Kargil and 24 in Leh. Deliberations were held on filling up additional vacancies for Junior Division Wing as per the proposal by Directorate General National Cadet Corps (DGNCC). Col Johar added that one more battalion shall be established in Kargil.

Kumar directed the concerned officials to identify schools, colleges, etc for the expansion of the NCC battalion. In this regard, the requirement of infrastructure should be given in writing, he added. Speaking on the significance of NCC in boosting security, Secretary Kumar stated that all support shall be imparted to NCC in its endeavours to double its numbers. He added that this shall also benefit the children by instilling discipline, courage and the ideal of selfless services, etc among the youth to make them responsible citizens.

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With regard to the preparations for the upcoming Vibrant Village Programme (VVP), Secretary Kumar instructed the officials to prepare for the camps well on time and instructed the officials to repair the hostels, boundary walls and other issues before the camp commences. VVP village development scheme was first announced in the 2022 Budget. The Vibrant Village Programme’s targets are to provide comprehensive development of villages on the border with China and improvement in the quality of life of people living in identified border villages. The development in these villages will help prevent migration, and thus also boost security. The Parliamentary Standing Committee in 2018 had pointed towards backwardness, illiteracy, and lack of basic facilities and infrastructure in our border areas. The VVP aims to address all these issues.

The meeting was attended Joint Director, Youth Services & Sports, Ladakh, Mozes Kunzang; Director, School Education, Department, Ladakh, Tsering Paldan; Additional Secretary, Higher Education Department, UT Ladakh; Deputy, Director PD&MD, UT Ladakh; Lt. Col 1 Ladakh Bn NCC, Leh.; Executive Engineer, PWD, Leh; Account Officer, Youth Services & Sports Department, UT Ladakh; General Manager NHPC Ltd. Ladakh; District Youth Services & Sports Officer, Leh; District Youth Services & Sports Officer, Kargil and other concerned officials.