Army vehicles stop at a base camp in Leh in the cold desert region of Ladakh, 434 kms from Srinagar. (Express File Photo: Shuaib Masoodi)
India-China Border Latest News Live Updates: Hours after the Indian Army said that a Colonel and two soldiers had died in Monday night’s violent faceoff, it confirmed 17 more “who were critically injured in the line of duty at the stand off location and exposed to sub-zero temp in the high altitude terrain” have succumbed to their injuries.
“Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged at the Galwan area where they had earlier clashed on the night of 15/16 June 2020. 17 Indian troops who were critically injured in the line of duty at the stand off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain have succumbed to their injuries, taking the total that were killed in action to 20. Indian Army is firmly committed to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the nation,” the Army statement said.
“Given its responsible approach to border management, India is very clear that all its activities are always within the Indian side of the LAC. We expect the same of the Chinese side,” the MEA said in a statement. Meanwhile, Beijing urged India to “strictly restrain its frontline troops from crossing the border or taking any unilateral action that may complicate the border situation”.
The last deaths at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) were in 1975 when an Indian patrol was ambushed by Chinese soldiers in Arunachal Pradesh. A violent clash between the two sides on the border had taken place at Nathu La in 1967.
People stand by the banks of the Pangong Lake, near the India-China border in Ladakh. (AP Photo: Channi Anand)
Security personnel in two districts of Himachal Pradesh bordering China have been put on alert following a violent face-off between China and India in Galwan valley of Ladakh.
The Himachal Pradesh police has issued an alert and an advisory in the districts of Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti, where security officials have been asked to take all precautionary measures to ensure security of the local population and also to collect intelligence to plan the future course of action, state police spokesperson SP Khushal Sharma said. All state intelligence units have also been alerted, he added.
(ENS)
UN chief Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over reports of violence and deaths at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China and urged both sides to exercise "maximum restraint," PTi reported his spokesperson as saying on Tuesday.
Eri Kaneko, Associate Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, made the comments at the daily press briefing. "We are concerned about reports of violence and deaths at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China and urge both sides to exercise maximum restraint. We take positive note of reports that the two countries have engaged to deescalate the situation," Kaneko said. (PTI)
The Indian Army officer killed in a violent clash with Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh on Monday night, Colonel Santosh Babu, fulfilled his father's personal dreams of serving the country and was expecting a posting to this city. The slain officer's father said while he could not live his dreams of serving the armed forces, his son did.
'I could not join the army and serve my country. So I wanted my son to join the defence forces and serve our country though my relatives discouraged the idea,' B Upender, father of the slain Colonel and a retired banker, said.
Expressing his heartfelt condolences over Babu's demise, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, in a statement, said the state government will stand by the bereaved family.
(PTI)
Hours after the Army said that a Colonel and two soldiers had died in Monday night's violent faceoff, it confirmed 17 more have succumbed "who were critically injured in the line of duty at the stand off location and exposed to sub-zero temp in the high altitude terrain""Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged at the Galwan area where they had earlier clashed on the night of 15/16 June 2020. 17 Indian troops who were critically injured in the line of duty at the stand off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain have succumbed to their injuries, taking the total that were killed in action to 20 Indian Army is firmly committed to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the nation," the Army statement said.
Calling the killing of one officer and two soldiers in a violent face-off between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley last night, the Congress party said there can be no compromise with India’s security and territorial integrity. The party, in a statement, said, “Reports of Chinese Army moving thousands of troops in Galwan Valley and Pangong Tso Lake Area (Ladakh) shocked the entire nation as an audacious attempt on our territorial integrity.”
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed her condolences to the three Indian soldiers killed in a violent face-off with the Chinese side in the Galwan Valley along the disputed India-China border.
"I salute the valour of the three Indian soldiers who were martyred at Galwan Valley while performing a supreme service for the nation. My heart goes out to the families of these brave men. May lord give them strength in this difficult time," she said.
MEA: "On the late-evening and night of 15th June, 2020 a violent face-off happened as a result of an attempt by the Chinese side to unilaterally change the status quo there.Both sides suffered casualties that could have been avoided had the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed by the Chinese side."
MEA on the violent face off on China border: "Given its responsible approach to border management, India is very clear that all its activities are always within the Indian side of the LAC. We expect the same of the Chinese side.We remain firmly convinced of the need for the maintenance of peace and tranquillity in border areas and the resolution of differences through dialogue. At the same time, we are also strongly committed to ensuring India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity."
India has released a statement on a violent face off in the Galwan Valley along the disputed India-China border on Monday night. The Ministry of External Affairs said: "India and China have been discussing through military and diplomatic channels the de-escalation of the situation in the border area in Eastern Ladakh. Senior Commanders had a productive meeting on 6th June 2020 and agreed on a process for such de-escalation. Subsequently, ground commanders had a series of meetings to implement the consensus reached at a higher level."
"It has historically been a difficult topic to address — the 1962 Indo-China War, India’s dubious record in terms of the origins of the conflict, and its disastrous performance during the war itself (the bravery of our unsupported, ill-equipped jawans notwithstanding). Addressed it must be, if only to prevent a similarly ostrich-in-the-sand mentality from taking over India’s perspective on the China question in the 21st century, more than 50 years since the two sides came to blows in the Himalayas.
Between Doklam, a few years ago, and the current volatility at the LAC with China, it is important to understand these situations as part of a broader picture about global politics, the reality of China’s capacities and broad spectrum tactical options, and India’s own strategic goals and capabilities and options," Sarjan Shah writes
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Edappadi Palaniswami expressed his condolences for those who lost their lives in Ladakh. In a tweet today, the CM said, Palani from Kadakkalore (Ramanathapuram) martyred in Ladakh, my condolences to his family.
CPIM Tuesday asked the Centre to come out with an authoritative statement on what actually happened. It also asked both the Governments to immediately initiate high level talks to defuse the situation. "It is unfortunate that during the de-escalation process on the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, a clash has taken place at the Galwan Valley. This has taken place after the talks between the two sides at a high military-level began on June 6 to discuss the process of disengagement. Both the sides have reported casualties," a statement from the CPI (M) said.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor expressed shock and urged the Centre to handle the situation in a resolute manner. "Let's honour those who serve on our borders every day, risking their lives for our nation," he said on Twitter
Expressing anger over the violent faceoff at Ladakh’s Galwan Valley, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Tuesday called for a strong response from the Centre to the repeated incursions by the Chinese into Indian territory.
"It is time now for India to stand up to these repeated incursions that are a blatant violation of our territorial rights and put a stop to such attacks on our territorial integrity," Amarinder said. Captain Amarinder said the country could not afford to show weakness at this time and needed to take a strong stand to deter the Chinese from any further intrusions.
"The Chinese actions were in direction violation of all the treaties signed between the two countries and a brazen assault on Indian integrity," he said. Paying tributes to the soldiers who had lost their lives in the Galwan Valley violence, Captain Amarinder said the whole nation today stands with the Indian Army in their hour of grief.
The Congress on Tuesday termed as shocking and unacceptable the death of an Indian Army officer and two soldiers in the Galwan Valley and said the development was a matter of serious national concern. Congress also demanded that the government take the nation into confidence and convene a meeting to brief the leadership of political parties about the ground situation.
"It is a matter of serious national concern as it has grave implications for national security," Congress senior spokesperson and party's deputy leader in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma said. "As we have been requesting, the government should urgently take the nation into confidence. We demand that the government immediately convene a meeting and brief the leadership of political parties about the ground situation," he said.
General VK Singh (retd) expressed his condolences after an officer and two soldiers lost their lives in a violent face off in the Galwan Valley. "Saddened by the news of the martyrdom of our boys in the Galwan Valley. I salute their indomitable courage, selflessness and sacrifice," the Union Minister tweeted.
The tensions on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between Indian security forces and China’s PLA have renewed the question of how New Delhi should deal with a rising, assertive Beijing. C Raja Mohan, director of the Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore and contributing editor on international affairs for The Indian Express, and Vijay Gokhale, Former Foreign Secretary and India’s Ambassador to China, look at Beijing's attempts to reorder the Indo-Pacific as its zone of influence.
An analysis of high-resolution satellite images of the Pangong Tso area in Ladakh shows that not only have the Chinese changed the status quo at the Fingers, the mountain spurs along the lake, but also built “substantial” structures in the contested region of the Line of Actual Control.
The May 27 images by Planet Labs show dozens of new structures, most likely tents, that have come up between Finger 8 and Finger 4 on the north bank of Pangong Tso, one of the main points of contention in the current standoff. Read more here
The Line of Actual Control (LAC) mostly passes on the land, but Pangong Tso is a unique case where it passes through the water as well. The points in the water at which the Indian claim ends and Chinese claim begins are not agreed upon mutually. Read Sushant Singh's explainer on the importance of Pangong Tso
Monday's incident took place in the Galwan Valley region in Ladakh. The disengagement process had started in the region to resolve the tense situation in the region. On June 6, Indian and Chinese ambassadors joined a video call between diplomats of their border working mechanism Friday to underline that “the two sides should handle their differences through peaceful discussion” and “not allow them to become disputes”. A day later, on June 6, the commanders of the Indian and Chinese armies met at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point. Sources had told The Indian Express more talks with China were expected at the military and diplomatic levels.