India-China clash: Why it's shocking even to the Army as PLA force outnumbers Indian troops

The presence of an unprecedented number of Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley and the brutality with which they attacked the Indian soldiers are some of the eye-openers for Indian Army, which is likely to review its patrolling tactics near the Line of Control as a consequence.

Though not a single bullet was fired in the bloody clash, the savagery with which the PLA troops struck the Indian troops with iron-studded sticks and clubs was something new.

Read: Stand-off on 70th anniversary of India-China relations

Several men were pushed from the hills and they died from a combination of injury and exposure to extreme cold.

Such brutality was also seen last month when another Indian patrol party was attacked by the PLA troops on the northern bank of the Pangong Tso in Ladakh— a contentious area—during the May 5-6 clash.

The commanding officer of the 11 Mahar regiment was seriously injured and is still recuperating.

Follow live updates on India-China border tension

Some of the patrolling strategies such as not to carry small arms on LAC patrol may be reviewed. This is simply because if the enemy is in large numbers, they can overpower the opponents by sheer brute force.

Nearly seven years ago, India and China signed the Border Defence Cooperation Agreement (BDCA) consolidating the arrangements New Delhi and Beijing agreed upon in 1993 and 1996 and taking forward the 2005 protocol for Confidence Building Measures between the two Armies.

Also Read: All you need to know about Ghulam Rassul Galwan — The man after whom the Galwan river was named

According to the BDCA, in a conflict situation, Indian and Chinese troops are required to disengage by carrying out banner drills without pointing guns.

For decades, there was no firing on the LAC where jostling, pushing and fisticuffs between troops from both sides happened several times in recent years. But the level of brutality seen in the Galwan Valley is unprecedented.

Another new lesson for the Army would be to augment the security of even the uncontested area as Galwan valley was one such area where the PLA troops entered in a big way to change the game.