AGENCIES / WEB DESK
The Chinese military continue to increase its troops in areas around Pangong Tso lake and Galwan Valley along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, suggesting it was not ready to end its confrontation with the Indian Army anytime soon, people familiar with the situation in the disputed region said on Saturday.
he Chinese side has particularly bolstered its presence in the Galwan Valley, erecting around 100 tents in the last two weeks and bringing in heavy equipment for construction of bunkers, notwithstanding the stiff protest by Indian troops, they said.
There have been reports of multiple incidents of transgressions by Chinese troops in several areas in Eastern Ladakh in the last one week, and soldiers from the two sides were involved in scuffles on at least two occasions, authoritative sources said.
It is learnt that the Chinese army forcefully stopped movement of Indian troops on several occasions when they were carrying out patrolling in Pangong Tso lake area this week.
In the midst of the escalating tension, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane paid a quiet visit to the headquarters of 14 Corps in Leh on Friday and reviewed with the top commanders the overall security scenario in the region including in the disputed areas along the LAC, the de-facto border between India and China.
India on Thursday said the Chinese military was hindering normal patrolling by its troops and asserted that India has always taken a very responsible approach towards border management.
At a media briefing, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava also strongly refuted China’s contention that the tension was triggered due to trespassing by Indian forces on the Chinese side.
India’s response came two days after China accused the Indian Army of trespassing into its territory, claiming that it was an “attempt to unilaterally change the status” of the LAC in Sikkim and Ladakh.
On May 5, around 250 Indian and Chinese army personnel clashed with iron rods, sticks, and even resorted to stone-pelting in the Pangong Tso lake area in which soldiers on both sides sustained injuries.
In a separate incident, nearly 150 Indian and Chinese military personnel were engaged in a face-off near Naku La Pass in the Sikkim sector on May 9. At least 10 soldiers from both sides sustained injuries.
The troops of India and China were engaged in a 73-day stand-off in Doklam tri-junction in 2017 which even triggered fears of a war between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.