Srinagar, Aug. 20 -- Jammu- Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday turned the old idea of India's border settlements on its head, declaring that villages along the frontier are not the country's "last villages" but its "first villages"-the frontline of India's identity, security and development.

Addressing residents of six strategic villages-Karol Krishna, Rathua, Gujjar Chak, Gajnal, Bobiya and Kadiyala-in Kathua district under the Vibrant Villages Programme-Phase 2, Sinha said the story of India's development should begin from its borders.

"When the story of India's development is written, its first chapter should begin in villages like these, where India's border breathes and the tricolour flutters," he said.

The LG said that ...