Guns ready, bunkers built: How Indian Army is training villagers, including women, in Kashmir's Chenab Valley | WATCH

The training programme is being conducted at Shingini panchayat in the Bhalessa area, located about 90 km from the Doda district headquarters.

• Army trains 150 Village Defence Guards in Doda for counter-terrorism readiness
• VDG members get automatic weapons, tactical training, and bunker building skills.
• Training aims to enhance security and morale in Chenab Valley's terror-prone villages.

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Amid an intensified counter-terrorism operation in the upper reaches of the Chenab Valley, the Army has stepped up efforts to bolster grassroots security by training Village Defence Guards (VDGs) in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district, officials said on Tuesday.

Around 150 VDG members from 17 remote villages along the Doda-Chamba border - including women volunteers - are undergoing specialised training in handling automatic weapons, basic tactical manoeuvres, self-defence, bunker construction and methods to repel hostile attacks.

#WATCH | Bhalessa, Doda, J&K: To further strengthen counter-terrorism arrangements in the Doda district of the Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory, the Indian Army has initiated specialised guerrilla warfare training for Village Defence Guards (VDGs). (30.12) pic.twitter.com/oGlADvHaIH

— ANI (@ANI) December 31, 2025

The villages lie close to forested and mountainous terrain where security forces are currently carrying out extensive search operations following intelligence inputs on possible terrorist movement.

The training programme is being conducted at Shingini panchayat in the Bhalessa area, located about 90 km from the Doda district headquarters. Officials said the initiative is aimed at equipping local volunteers with essential skills to safeguard their villages and function as a first line of defence in vulnerable areas.

An official noted that the initiative complements ongoing operations by the Army, police and paramilitary forces in the higher reaches of the Chenab Valley to trace and neutralise terrorists who infiltrated the region, particularly in Doda and Kishtwar districts, over the past few years.

VDG members have welcomed both the training and the recent upgrade of their weaponry. Several volunteers expressed appreciation to Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the induction of self-loading rifles (SLRs), which have replaced older .303 rifles and significantly enhanced their operational confidence.

"This is a major initiative bringing together members from 17 Village Defence Groups. We are being trained in weapon handling, bunker construction and self-defence. Getting such training at our doorstep is highly encouraging," said Surinder Singh, a VDG member from Shingini.

He urged the government to provide more automatic weapons, recalling the frequent terror attacks in the region during the early 1990s.

Another volunteer, Rajesh Kumar Thakur from Gauala village, said the training imparted by the Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police had boosted morale among VDG members.

"Earlier, we only had .303 rifles. With the induction of automatic weapons, our confidence has grown and we feel better prepared to defend our villages," he said.

Thakur also called for an honorarium for unpaid VDG members, adding that the construction of bunkers in villages has helped reduce fear among residents.

Security officials said that strengthening VDGs alongside sustained counter-terrorism operations in the higher reaches forms part of a multi-layered security strategy aimed at denying terrorist groups any local support base and ensuring lasting peace in the region.

(With PTI inputs)