China has built a full-fledged village near Doklam: Reports

NEW DELHI: Five years after the Doklam standoff between India and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) over the construction of a road near Bhutanese territory, fresh evidence of a fully inhabited village barely 9 km east of the previous flashpoint area has emerged, according to media reports.

This village, which the Chinese have named Pangda, is said to lie “squarely” in Bhutanese territory. Satellite images show that the village is not only fully inhabited but most of the houses have cars parked in front of them. Also, close to Pangda is an “all-weather carriageway” which enters 10 kms into Bhutan and is along the banks of the Amo Chu river.

The reports, quoting army sources, said, that “continuous and seamless vigil” is maintained “on all activities along (India’s) borders, especially those that impinge upon the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the nation. For this, necessary mechanisms and safeguards to meet any contingencies are in place”.

The emergence of Pangda as a fully populated village is a throwback to the 2017 Doklam crisis when Indian and Chinese troops confronted each other for 72 days. At that time, the media reports said, Indian soldiers had prevented Chinese workers from accessing a strategic ridge – Jhamperi – adjacent to the Doklam plateau.

This ridge, the reports indicate, would give an advantage to the PLA in that it would give it a “direct line-of-sight” to the Siliguri corridor or the ‘Chicken’s Neck’ which connects the northeast to the rest of India. Besides, the Jhamperi ridge indicates that the Chinese PLA now seeks to go around Indian army defences by using an alternate route to reach the feature.

Quoting Lieutenant General (retired) Praveen Bakshi, who was the Eastern Army Commander during the Doklam crisis, the reports said, “Pangda village and the ones to its North and South are a classic examples of the Chinese trying to establish their legitimacy over the Jhamperi ridge and the Doklam plateau”. Lt Gen Bakshi goes on to say that raising villages along the border that the PLA disputes is “essentially a manner of giving legitimacy to its territorial claims”.

The fresh satellite images, which have been sourced from Maxar, a satellite imaging service, show a fully constructed bridge at Pangda besides “foundations of six buildings here are visible”, the reports said.

Damien Symon, a geospatial intelligence researcher at The Intel Lab, is quoted to have said that “the speed and development of this remote area is noteworthy, underlining how China is extending its borders uncontested”. Symon adds that “the road construction activity in this distant, isolated sector highlights efforts taken by China to ensure all weather, uninterrupted connectivity to remote, new habitats across its frontier”.

NEW DELHI: Five years after the Doklam standoff between India and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) over the construction of a road near Bhutanese territory, fresh evidence of a fully inhabited village barely 9 km east of the previous flashpoint area has emerged, according to media reports. This village, which the Chinese have named Pangda, is said to lie “squarely” in Bhutanese territory. Satellite images show that the village is not only fully inhabited but most of the houses have cars parked in front of them. Also, close to Pangda is an “all-weather carriageway” which enters 10 kms into Bhutan and is along the banks of the Amo Chu river. The reports, quoting army sources, said, that “continuous and seamless vigil” is maintained “on all activities along (India’s) borders, especially those that impinge upon the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the nation. For this, necessary mechanisms and safeguards to meet any contingencies are in place”. The emergence of Pangda as a fully populated village is a throwback to the 2017 Doklam crisis when Indian and Chinese troops confronted each other for 72 days. At that time, the media reports said, Indian soldiers had prevented Chinese workers from accessing a strategic ridge – Jhamperi – adjacent to the Doklam plateau. This ridge, the reports indicate, would give an advantage to the PLA in that it would give it a “direct line-of-sight” to the Siliguri corridor or the ‘Chicken’s Neck’ which connects the northeast to the rest of India. Besides, the Jhamperi ridge indicates that the Chinese PLA now seeks to go around Indian army defences by using an alternate route to reach the feature. Quoting Lieutenant General (retired) Praveen Bakshi, who was the Eastern Army Commander during the Doklam crisis, the reports said, “Pangda village and the ones to its North and South are a classic examples of the Chinese trying to establish their legitimacy over the Jhamperi ridge and the Doklam plateau”. Lt Gen Bakshi goes on to say that raising villages along the border that the PLA disputes is “essentially a manner of giving legitimacy to its territorial claims”. The fresh satellite images, which have been sourced from Maxar, a satellite imaging service, show a fully constructed bridge at Pangda besides “foundations of six buildings here are visible”, the reports said. Damien Symon, a geospatial intelligence researcher at The Intel Lab, is quoted to have said that “the speed and development of this remote area is noteworthy, underlining how China is extending its borders uncontested”. Symon adds that “the road construction activity in this distant, isolated sector highlights efforts taken by China to ensure all weather, uninterrupted connectivity to remote, new habitats across its frontier”.