New life in Tam Duong

In the middle of the peaceful border region in the Southwest of the Fatherland, there is a “new village” that is gradually becoming brighter, not because of the colorful lights but because of the eyes, smiles and diligent hands of the ordinary people. Tam Duong, the name sounds familiar, is now the home of many households from many places, opening up a new life right next to the border militia post, where every stubble and melon row bears the pioneering footprints.

The Pioneers

We arrived at the residential area adjacent to the Militia Post in Tam Duong Hamlet, Binh Hiep Commune, Kien Tuong Town, Long An Province on a morning at the beginning of the rainy season. The concrete road ran through the vast fields, with newly built level 4 houses on both sides, low fences planted with bougainvillea, and children's laughter echoing from the small yard. The scene appeared like a beautiful, peaceful, and vibrant countryside film.

Peaceful small village in Tam Duong

But it was not always like that in the residential area in Tam Duong. This place used to be a low-lying area, full of reeds, acid sulfate soil and forest mosquitoes. Previously, there was only the sound of wind and the familiar footsteps of patrolling soldiers. Then, when the policy of building residential areas adjacent to border militia posts, border posts and stations was initiated in 2019, 40 households volunteered to leave their old places, choosing to stay in the border area. They believed in a new future, a future written from sweat and aspiration.

Mr. Nguyen Hoang Hon (53 years old) welcomed us with a gentle smile and a firm handshake. He was one of the first people to volunteer to live in this residential area. In a clean brick house, he looked thoughtfully at the rice field behind him, his voice light: "I will go first, my children will follow. If they can live here, the children will have a future."

That seemingly simple statement contains a journey from the days when he was a buffalo boy, eating rice balls, following his parents to plow the fields in the reed forest. That place that was once considered “dead land”, now he and many other families have revived with fruitful harvests.

Mr. Hon has 5 hectares of land for production, rotating 1 rice crop and 3 melon crops each year. Each season brings a stable income of 50-70 million VND. A number that may not be large in a prosperous place, but for farmers in the border area, it is a large asset earned after months of working in the sun and rain.

Next to Mr. Hon's house is the house of his twin brother, Mr. Nguyen Hieu Le. The two brothers are like two family milestones in the new land. Mr. Le shared: "The government takes care of the people from housing to electricity, water, and roads. We just need to work hard to have a stable life. My brother and I live close to each other, and we feel at ease when we see each other in the morning!" In the story, Mr. Le repeatedly thanked the government and the armed forces for helping build houses, convert land, and provide adequate electricity and water. Now, the families live in peace, production is favorable, and their children study properly.

Not only the elderly, but also the young generation has begun to “take root” in Tam Duong. Mr. Phan The Phong, a young farmer, is a living proof. The house he just built for nearly 1 billion VND clearly demonstrates the confidence and determination of the new generation to “stick to the border”.

Mr. Phong smiled gently: “The land is near the militia post so it is safe and convenient to travel. I rented more land and expanded the rice and melon plantation. Living here is simple but happy, the people love each other, and are willing to help anyone in need. The people here also actively participate in mass movements to protect security and order at the border. During their lives and production, if they see anything unusual, they quickly dial the “hotline” number to report to the authorities for timely handling.”

When the border "blossoms", militia posts become common homes

We visited the Tam Duong Hamlet Militia Post, which is now no longer just a guard post but has truly become a “common home” for the community. Every week, the people and the militia meet to discuss the security situation and together solve small and big problems in the hamlet. The Militia Post model associated with border households is not only an initiative but has become a daily breath here.

On the border fields, people are enthusiastically producing.

Tam Duong hamlet chief Tran Minh Nhut emotionally recounted: “My family was one of the first 40 households to come here. We immediately established a “satellite party cell” here. To protect the borderland, sometimes there is no need to carry a gun, just living a decent life and loving each other is enough!”

Looking out from Tam Duong, we could see the sturdy roofs of houses in the middle of green fields, a new symbol of life, of sovereignty linked to the people. 40 households, 40 different stories but all share the same source of "living, building and preserving".

The border is no longer a place of “storms and waves” but is gradually becoming a “blossoming” border village. The border, where the simple dream of a prosperous life is nurtured every day by the hands and minds of the barefoot people, the “soldiers without guns” of peacetime.

In addition to the border residential area in Tam Duong, there are many other residential areas in the province's border area that have been formed from the program of building residential areas adjacent to border militia posts, border posts, and border stations. Long An province has 20 border communes with nearly 135km of border with Cambodia, which is the leading locality in implementing this program.

According to the Provincial Military Command, sending people to the border to settle down and produce long-term is a correct and strategic policy of the Party and State. To implement the program, the province has organized extensive and in-depth propaganda and received the consensus and support of the people. From 2019 to now, in the border area of ​​the province, 25 residential areas have been built near militia posts, posts, and border stations with 320 houses.

Households in these residential areas are all “settling down and working”. Currently, the program continues to be implemented with the cooperation and contribution of departments, branches, localities, and philanthropists. Thereby, contributing to the peace of the people, protecting the border land, building a peaceful, friendly, cooperative border for mutual development.

Each house built in the border area is not only a warm home but also a “living milestone”, a steadfast belief. Here, the border is now new roofs with lights, children going to school, the sound of water pumps in the irrigation season, vehicles coming and going continuously,... Tam Duong - new days, new life just exist in the vibrant border area./.

Lam Hong - Bien Cuong

Source: https://baolongan.vn/cuoc-song-moi-o-tam-duong-a196569.html