Decision taken after China clash : China incursion: ITBP plans more outposts for Tawang

Reports from the ground suggest the Chinese army has made frontline formations near some of the sensitive spots and is building infrastructure, including military camps

The places where the additional border outposts will be set up include Yangtze.: Representational image/File Photo

Imran Ahmed Siddiqui   |   TT  |  New Delhi   |    26.12.22  : The Indo-Tibetan Border Police plans to set up additional border outposts in zones prone to Chinese incursions in Arunachal Pradesh, the decision coming after the transgression bid by Chinese troops in the Tawang sector on December 9.

Reports from the ground suggest the Chinese army has made frontline formations near some of these sensitive spots and is building infrastructure, including military camps, sources said.

“Tawang is one of the most sensitive sectors on the Line of Actual Control. During a meeting last week, the ITBP brass discussed several measures, including additional outposts,” an official of the ITBP, the first line of defence on the China frontier, told The Telegraph.

The places where the additional border outposts will be set up include Yangtze (17,000 feet above sea level), where the Chinese incursion bid on December 9 led to a clash that injured 15 to 20 Indian soldiers, the official said.

Another ITBP official confirmed the decision, saying the additional border outposts would come up in areas that have witnessed confrontations with the Chinese army over the past few months.

Sources said the Chinese army had shown “brazen” aggression for months in the Tawang sector, forcing Indian troops to warn them off with placards and loudspeakers, in the lead-up to the December 9 incursion bid.

“Even under the extreme cold conditions, which make movement very difficult in the hostile terrain, our men remain in a high state of alertness and are keeping a close watch on the frontier round the clock,” an ITBP commandant in the eastern sector said.

“During the latest (December 9) encounter, our troops fought hard and foiled the transgression bid by the Chinese.”

The commandant said the ITBP was using all-terrain vehicles including snow scooters, besides its “fleet” of yaks, to provide supplies to troops deployed in remote and high-altitude areas.

Of the 3,488km India-China border, a stretch of 1,346km falls in the eastern sector.

China and India have differing perceptions of the LAC at many places. In certain areas in the Tawang sector, both sides routinely come face to face while patrolling areas up to their claim lines. They usually follow protocol and return to their positions.

The Indian and Chinese armies have been locked in standoffs at multiple border points in Ladakh, where the Chinese are estimated to have occupied 1,000sqkm  of India-claimed territory since May 2020.

The 90,000-strong ITBP was raised on October 24, 1962, to guard the Chinese frontier.