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India seems to be facing the problems of the border with two of its neighbors, China and Nepal, while grappling with the rising cases of covid-19 in the house and a cyclone along the east coast.
The India border challenges are not new. The India-China border problem dates back to 1962 war. The lack of a clearly demarcated border between the two countries continues despite numerous rounds of talks. The current tensions have flared in a zone of Ladakh, in Kashmir (India and China armies bringing reinforcements in Demchok, Daulat Beg Oldie and around Galwan river as well as Pangong Tso lake in Ladakh, said two people, requesting anonymity. There is also a little bit of tension in the north of Sikkim.
The current India-China tensions “are a reminder that the aggression is not always the rhetoric,” said assistant secretary of state for south Asia affairs of the US department of state, at an event in Washington Wednesday.
The India-Nepal boundary issue, too, is decades old. Both countries claim territory that is located in the tri-junction of India, Nepal and China. India and Nepal both had shown Kalapani and Lipulekh in their political maps, but Kathmandu this week unveiled a new map that shows a new area, which is Limpiyadhura, within its limits.
The trigger for the recent increase in tensions Kathmandu objection to India for the opening of a road that connects the Lipulekh pass to Dharchula in Uttarakhand. India said that the road is located within Pithoragarh district, and give to the pilgrims from India easier access to Kailash Mansarovar. But in Nepal premier KP Sharma Oli said Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura belong to Nepal and pledged to “retrieve” them through political and diplomatic efforts, PTI reported.
On both issues, India has issued measured reactions.
Last week, India’s foreign ministry spokesman Anurag Srivastava said in New Delhi “remains committed to the objective of maintaining peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas”. Indian army chief Manoj Mukund Naravane said Indian troops have always defended the peace and tranquility along the border.
In a separate statement, the army said that the incidents along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) occur due to different perceptions of where the border lies.
Indian and Chinese troops had clashed in the eastern part of Ladakh near Pangong Lake on 5 May and in the north of Sikkim, on the 8th May. The soldiers of both sides were injured in the incident, which marked the first major crisis along the LAC from the 73 days of confrontation in Doklam in 2017. As it stands, China claims 90,000 square kilometers of Indian territory and occupies another 38,000 square kilometres in Jammu and Kashmir. In addition, pursuant to the border agreement of March 1963, Pakistan illegally ceded 5,180 square kilometres of Indian territory in Pakistan occupied Kashmir to China.Former ambassador of India to China, Gautam Bambawale said: “the Improvement in transportation and communications have led to the two armies, patrolling these border areas better, with more frequency. Therefore, the possibility of patrols, face-to-face is the greatest. This is the dynamic that we are seeing. But, not detailed Standard Operating Procedures (Sop) in order to de-escalate this type of situation and both parties must abide by these.”
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