Army denies Chinese incursion in Arunachal Pradesh

Indian Army on Wednesday denied reports of Chinese incursion in Arunachal Pradesh, as claimed by a BJP MP, who said PLA troops built a temporary wooden bridge on a nullah (rivulet) within Indian territory last month.

“There has been no such incursion. It is reiterated that there is no permanent presence of either Chinese soldiers or civilians in the area and surveillance is maintained by Indian troops,” an Army spokesperson said.

The assertion from the army comes after Eastern Arunachal Pradesh MP Tapir Gao posted a video on social media claiming Chinese Army had constructed a wooden bridge over Doimru Nallah.

Later when a local news portal (www.Arunachal24.in) contacted him, Gao said the video was shot by a BJP worker in August 2019 when he was patrolling the area with Indian Army soldiers.

As the news spread in the media, Gao deleted the original post. An Indian Army official said the army did not accommodate BJP workers in their patrol parties.

“The area being referred to in the report is the area of Fish Tail. There are different perceptions of the alignment of the Line of Actual Control, as in many other areas. The terrain is thickly vegetated and all movements are undertaken on foot along nalas (rivulets) and streams. During monsoons whenever the nalas are in spates, temporary bridges are constructed by the patrols for their movement,” the spokesperson said.

“Being an area of differing claims, troops routinely from either side patrol the area. In addition, civilian hunters and herb collectors also frequent here during summer months,” he said. The statement, however, is silent on whether the troops from the People's Liberation Army came to that area last month and whether they constructed such a bridge.

“India and China have well established diplomatic and military mechanisms to address all issues in our border areas. The two sides agree that maintenance of peace and tranquillity in all areas of India-China border areas as a prerequisite to smooth development of overall bilateral relations,” he said.

“Both countries have also agreed to work towards a fair reasonable and mutually acceptable settlement of the boundary question on the basis of 2005 Agreement on Political Parameters and Guiding Principles,” the spokesperson added.