Indian Army arms, trains Village Defence Guards in Jammu region
Jammu: In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Indian forces have stepped up the militarisation of civilian areas by imparting weapons training to notorious Village Defence Guards (VDGs) in Doda district amid ongoing large-scale cordon and search operations in Jammu region.
According to Kashmir Media Service, around 150 VDG members, including women, from 17 remote villages in Doda areas are undergoing training under the supervision of the Indian Army. The training includes handling of automatic weapons, minor combat tactics, bunker construction, self-defence techniques and repelling attacks.
The villages lie close to forested and mountainous terrain where Indian Army, police and paramilitary forces are carrying out extensive cordon-and-search operations on the pretext of suspected militant movement. The training programme is being conducted at Shingini panchayat in the Bhalessa area, about 90 kilometres from Doda district headquarters.
Officials said the move is aimed at turning local civilians into a first line of defence in so-called vulnerable areas and is being projected as a complementary measure to ongoing military operations in Doda and Kishtwar districts.
The occupation authorities have also upgraded the weaponry of VDGs by replacing outdated .303 rifles with self-loading rifles, a move critics say reflects New Delhi’s policy of arming civilians in conflict zones, further endangering lives and deepening insecurity. Local VDG members acknowledged receiving weapons training and new rifles, while also demanding more arms and financial incentives. Some members recalled the period of heightened violence in the 1990s and sought additional support, including honorariums for unpaid volunteers.
Observers and rights groups have repeatedly warned that arming civilian groups under the VDG framework risks fuelling communal tensions, vigilante violence and human rights abuses, while absolving the occupying forces of accountability.
Analysts say the strategy underscores India’s reliance on militarised solutions in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, where sustained operations, civilian arming and surveillance continue to exacerbate fear and instability rather than address the root political dispute.
