New Delhi: The Defense Ministry has removed all monthly reports from its official website since 2017 after removing a monthly report that referred to China’s “unilateral aggression” in Ladakh, according to a report in the Indian express.
The monthly reports that have been removed include those related to the 2017 crisis in Doklam that do not mention the clash between Indian and Chinese troops.
Sources told the national newspaper that the internal mechanism for preparing and sharing reports publicly is being modified to make them more “complete” rather than a list of updates received from each branch of the ministry.
In August, before removing all reports since 2017, the minister had withdrawn the June 2020 report that said: “Chinese aggression has increased throughout LAC and more particularly in the Galwan Valley since May 5, 2020 “and” the Chinese side transgressed in the areas of Kugrang Nala, Gogra and the north shore of Lake Pangong Tso from May 17 to 18, 2020 ”.
The report also mentioned the clashes on June 15 in the Galwan Valley and claimed that senior military officials were in talks. He warned that “while military and diplomatic engagement and dialogue continue to reach a mutually acceptable consensus, the current confrontation is likely to continue.”
The joint report for April and May, for its part, did not mention the Chinese aggression, but did refer to the crisis in LAC without going into details.
There have been four mentions of China in reports since August 2019: an “India-China Joint Working Group” meeting on August 13-14, 2019; “The Joint Army Exercise ‘Hand in Hand’ between the Indian Army and the PLA, China was held from 7 to 20 December 2019 in Umroi Cantt, Meghalaya”; the February 5, 2020 sighting of a Chinese warship, Jiangwei-Il, in Pakistani waters not far from Porbandar; and the March 2020 report on the BRO’s construction of a Bailey Bridge “to meet strategic requirements and ensure connectivity with 451 villages in the Upper Subansiri district, bordering China.”
According to sources cited in the Quick report, reports are approved by senior officials before being made public. Reports also do not usually refer to major operations such as the Balakot airstrikes, the Indian-Pakistani dogfight, the Doklam deployment.
Sources within the Defense Ministry said Quick that previous reports would be “soon” back on the website, “probably in October”.
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