JOIN USArmy Chief Gen Bipin Rawat on Thursday received a briefing on the security scenario near the India-China border in Sikkim following the recent confrontation between the border guarding forces of the two countries.
Gen Rawat, who is on a two-day tour to the Northeast, discussed the security situation with Maj Gen Tejinder Singh, the General Officer Commanding of the 17 Division based in Gangtok and other senior officials. The defence ministry and army officials are tight-lipped on whether the army chief visited any of the forward areas.
The strategically significant border is looked after by the Siliguri-based 33 Corps, which has three mountain divisions at Gangtok (17 Div); and Kalimpong (27 Div) to take care of the different segments of India’s border with China and Bhutan. When constructed, the road in Doklam Plateau could lead the Chinese Army to Chumbi valley, a strategically significant area for controlling the Siliguri corridor — a narrow stretch of land that connects India’s seven northeastern states with the rest of the country.