Union Home Minister Amit Shah on 26 May 2026 launched the Vibrant Villages Programme Phase-2 (VVP-2) from the India-Pakistan border region near Bikaner, marking a significant push for holistic development of border villages along Rajasthan's western frontier with Pakistan. Under VVP-2, 184 strategic villages located across five border districts of Rajasthan have been selected for infrastructure and community development works. The district-wise selection comprises 68 villages in Sri Ganganagar, 46 in Bikaner, 36 in Barmer, 30 in Jaisalmer, and 4 villages in Phalodi (recently carved out from Jodhpur). The programme focuses on road connectivity, 4G mobile networks, electricity access and television connectivity in these remote frontier areas, with the strategic objective of reducing migration from border villages, ensuring "first village instead of last village" approach, and building emotional and security buffer along the international boundary. The programme provides Rs 3 crore annual allocation per village. For the financial year 2025-26, approval has been granted for more than 1,000 development works worth Rs 137 crore in sectors including electricity, drinking water, education, healthcare, agriculture, animal husbandry, sports, tourism, and infrastructure development. The government is also focusing on community participation and confidence-building measures through cultural programmes, awareness campaigns, tourism activities, training sessions, and community meetings to strengthen social engagement and emotional connectivity. VVP-2 succeeds the original Vibrant Villages Programme launched in 2023 for the northern Himalayan border with China, now extended to the western Indo-Pakistan border.