Excelsior Correspondent
RAJOURI, Apr 15: The Village Defence Committee (VDC) members, specially those deployed in the villages along the Line of Control in Lam/ Jhangar area of Nowshera in district Rajouri held brief protest and demanded release of remuneration in their favour.
The VDC members, who are ever alert and engaged in protecting families in the respective villages from the militants and also keeping eye on the smuggling of arms, ammunition and narcotics coming from across the Line of Control, said to be playing an important role by keeping check on illegal trade of narcotics.
The VDCs have been created with the aim of ensuring security of infrastructure around such villages and checking cross-border movement. VDCs have good knowledge of the local area, languages and people. Thus, they play an important role in assisting the armed forces in counter-terrorism operations, protecting infrastructure, maintaining surveillance on acts of sabotage and checking cross-border activities, besides preventing cross-border drug trafficking.
In the villages along the Line of Control, the VDC members have demanded from the government to pay salaries/remuneration and provide other facilities as well.
The VDC members, who a few days ago caught three notorious smugglers with a consignment of heroin in Sehar Makri area of Nowshera and handed them over to the police and army, demanded salaries besides other facilities.
They claimed that being residing close to the Line of Control, they observe that some locals are involved in the illegal drug trade and in such a situation, they have to risk their lives. They told that drug smugglers can attack them and in such a situation, the Government should make a concrete policy to empower the VDCs and start paying salaries to the VDC members so that they can work in a better way.
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