Friday, March 29, 2024

China thickens the plot as soldiers brace up for bleak winter on icy heights

Eight rounds of talks later, Indian and Chinese forces appear to be no closer to backing off in Ladakh from their entrenched positions then they were after the first round of talks. A couple of days ago, senior commanders from both sides met for 11 hours to discuss various issues. At the end of the discussions, the two sides issued statements saying they will meet again.

Well, whatever may be the results of next round, or rounds, of talks, one thing is becoming clear that both sides are resigned to spending winter months on the icy heights. In Ladakh alone, along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), India may have committed over 50,000 troops. That is way too many as compared to previous years.

Be it Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, or all the way down to Arunachal Pradesh in far east, additional troops are being kept battle ready. This amounts to LAC with China virtually turning into another LoC (Line of Control), hot around the year, which is what we have with Pakistan. Of course, there is no question of lowering the guard on LoC ever as Sunday’s incident of four Indian soldiers getting martyred in Kupwara shows.

In the Indian delegation, Joint Secretary of Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Naveen Srivastava was also present, just as he was earlier too. China has maintained that India should vacate the heights it had occupied in late August. This has been rejected by the Indian side which ideally wants status quo ante that prevailed before April this year to be restored.

With neither side willing to step back, threats of use of firearms in any future confrontation is real. For too long, neither side resorted to firing bullets at each other and salami slicing by China continued unabated year after year. All that seems to have changed after the martyrdom of 20 Indian soldiers in June 15.

This far, and no farther, is something that appears to be the signalling from the Indian side to its adversary. This new reality of a hardened Indian posture has prevailed on the LAC for past several months.

An anti-China sentiment may have been building steadily across India over the past few months. As a result, most Chinese companies are likely to sell far lesser fireworks, and even Laxmi & Ganesh idols, during the next few days, in the festival season. Interestingly, eco-friendly cow dung diyas are being produced across goshalas across the country in a bid to replace the cheap Chinese products which had flooded the markets over the years.

Hitting the Chinese companies economically by refusing to buy their products remained an effective way to halt their onward march. As the soldiers brace up for harsh winter months, giving up Chinese products and weeding them out from everyday lives is perhaps the least ordinary citizens of India can do. As it contributes to the fighting against China.

By this month-end, chances of serious fighting on several stretches along LAC may actually diminish, till April 2021, not because of surge of any mutual goodwill, but harsh weather. With temperatures touching -30 degree Celsius in these parts, surviving days battling the elements and keeping warm can be bigger challenges for the soldiers than firing from the adversary.

Meanwhile, according to a report from Beijing, Chinese President Li Xinping has instructed officials to expedite the construction of a new railway project connecting southwest Sichuan province to Linzi in Tibet. One end of this $47.8 billion line will end near the Indian border in Arunachal Pradesh.

The Sichuan-Tibet railway (image above) will be the second railway line into Tibet. It will cut journey time from Chengdu to Lhasa from 48 hours to 13 hours. What has not been said by the Chinese side is that it will help its stranglehold on Tibet as also move troops in forward areas.

It needs to be remembered that the trigger for Chinese aggression in Ladakh which began in April was the construction of a road towards Daulat Beg Oldie airfield near the Chinese border. The Indian side has also built a couple of important bridges on rivers flowing in these areas to ease vehicular movement.

Needless to say that China wants no infrastructure development on the Indian side of LAC even as it is furiously active on its side to build roads, bridges, and shelters for housing People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers.

Sant Kumar Sharma, a seasoned journalist, is an authority on Jammu and Kashmir. Two of his books on Article 370 and Delimitation are already out. The third one on Indus Waters Treaty is now out and could be bought here.

Sant began as a teacher but after six years, joined the Indian Express, Chandigarh in 1990, the year when terrorism was taking its first step in J & K and soon there would be exodus of lakhs of Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley. He subsequently worked for The Statesman, The Times of India and Star News among others. He is based in Jammu since May 2000.

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