Tension escalated on the line of Actual Control (lAC) in Chumar sector of ladakh on Thursday after the Chinese ramped up their troop strength from 250 to 1,000 at the stand-off point there forcing India also to rush in more troops. At present, an eyeball to eyeball situation prevails there for the fifth consecutive day with more than 1,500 Indian troops deployed there as compared to 100 two days back.
Another flag meeting between local commanders of both the armies is expected on Friday in Spangur, ladakh to find a way out to disengage. So far, two rounds of talks at the same place have taken place on Monday and Wednesday respectively but have failed to break the logjam. If the next meeting also remains inconclusive, diplomatic and political intervention is not ruled out, officials said here on Thursday.
The face-off situation at a place called Tibley in Chumar worsened on Thursday morning when China bolstered its troop strength and asked the Indian patrol to retreat. Not willing to take a chance, the Indian commanders also brought in more troops including the Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the armies were facing each other at a distance of 100-200 metres. later in the day, the two armies retreated to some distance in their respective areas but did not disengage.
India is in advantageous position there as road connectivity is till lAC and troops are getting regular food supply. On the other hand, China has comparatively poor infrastructure and its helicopters are airdropping food packets for its troops, officials said.
The two sides had reduced their troop strength at the face-off point on Wednesday morning after the last flag meeting but later in the day China again increased its strength. Moreover, it tried to gain an upper hand by trying to deploy more troops at another spot two kms from the current stand-off position at Tibley. However, Indians foiled the attempt by posting troops there and prevented the Chinese from intruding into its territory.
Asserting that India will not back-off as Chinese troops had intruded though they claim that Indian troops came more than six kms inside China and blocked road construction. New Delhi maintains that China was trying to build the road in Indian zone and therefore the local commanders are justified in protesting.
Also, India has insisted in both the flag meetings that the issue should be resolved as per the 2005 protocol and Border Defence Co-Operation Agreement (BDCA). The protocol specifies that both the sides should avoid face-offs and should disengage if one side protests through banner drill. In this case, Indian troops had shown banners asking China to return to its position across the lAC as its troops had come into India.
Meanwhile, the stand-off in Demchok where Chinese shepherds had pitched their tents on a grazing ground in India continued for the tenth day on Thursday. The incursion in this area is nearly 500 metres deep and local authorities have repeatedly asked the shepherds to return to their side. They have pitched tents to protest against construction of an irrigation canal by India in Demchok close to the lAC.
