China Still Knocking At The Door, India Ready For A Long Grind: One Year Of Galwan Clash

June 14, 2021

One year after the violent Galwan Valley clash between India and China, the Chinese soldiers are still in the region with no sign of status quo ante. India is ramping up military infrastructure further to enhance troop deployment. The Indian Army continues with its enhanced troop deployment of over 50,000 boots on the ground in Ladakh for the last one year.

One year has elapsed since the Galwan Valley clash India and China. The Chinese soldiers are still in the region with no sign of status quo ante. India is ramping up military infrastructure further to enhance troop deployment that is already in the range of 50,000 to 60,000 troops.

Building better road connectivity for quick mobilisation of troops and enhancement of equipment are some of the key areas that the Indian Army has focussed on to be better prepared to face Chinese belligerence in Ladakh over the last year as a final resolution seems far off.

As the Chinese dig in even after the initial disengagement in Pangong lake area that happened in February, the Indian Army has prepared itself to grind it out.

The Indian Army continues with its enhanced troop deployment of over 50,000 boots on the ground in Ladakh for the last one year including the peak harsh winter when temperatures dip to minus 40 degrees Celsius. Logistically and strategically, India is prepared to face the Chinese hostility if and when it happens, the officials said.

Providing logistics during peacetime deployment is a challenge in the winters, and with nearly five times the number of troops serving in forward locations, it was the entire war machinery that was pressed into action.

After 11 rounds of military talks at the Corps Commander-level to find a resolution, there is still no breakthrough despite the disengagement in Pangong lake.

Status At Galwan

As per the agreement between the two sides after the Galwan clash on June 15, the area up to Patrolling Point (PP) 14 was a no patrol zone. Both sides pulled back by 1.5 km each and the area turned into a buffer zone.

India had objected to China’s observation post near the PP 14 that led to the clash.

The Indian side moved back 700 metres. The first camp is 700 metres behind followed by camp-2 and camp-3 with approximately the same distance with Indian deployment to keep a watch on Chinese activities.

Sources say while no patrolling is being done till PP 14 — the point of the clash, it is necessary to maintain a vigil through various surveillance methods to keep a check on Chinese activities as they continue to be present in big numbers not too far away from the contentious point. However, there has been no untoward incident.

Long Haul In Ladakh

The enhanced boots on the ground in Ladakh could even become a permanent deployment strategy for years to come to challenge any Chinese misadventure.

“There is a four-to-five-year roadmap for border deployments and logistics. Whatever was planned for Ladakh for this period has been achieved in the last one year ensuring our troops can sustain for long,” said an army official.

Former Director General Operations Lt Gen Vinod Bhatia (retd) said there was no doubt this was a long haul. He said, “Status quo is still a far cry but the fact that disengagement took place in the most tense area is a good sign. Since then there has been no escalation anywhere. It’s a game of patience.”

“There could have been many more Galwans and the Chinese would have planned for it. But our action led by Col Santosh Babu deterred them,” Lt Gen Bhatia said.

The big challenge for the Indian Army was to ensure a smooth deployment of the enhanced numbers through winter. In order to ensure operational efficiency of troops deployed in winters, the Indian Army completed establishment of habitat facilities for all troops deployed in the sector.

“This was the first winter after the trouble in Ladakh. Now we are better prepared to continue with operations with the same and even more numbers for years to come,” said the army official.

The accommodation was set up for troops to withstand the severe cold and wind chill factor includes fast erectable modular shelters.

Apart from the smart camps with integrated facilities which have been built over the years, additional state-of-the-art habitat with integrated arrangements for electricity, water, heating facilities, health and hygiene have been recently created to accommodate the troops.

Beefing Up Surveillance

It’s not just the troops on the ground but a change in tactics and enhanced surveillance to maintain a vigil of Chinese activities.

This includes new boats to be deployed in the Pangong lake that became a volatile friction point in the year-long tussle.

The Indian Army has begun to get delivery of new boats suited for deployment in Pangong lake for ferrying troops and surveillance, sources said.

There are two types of boats that the army needed — one for patrolling and surveillance, and the other for quick deployment of troops on the banks of the lake to reduce the time taken as manoeuvring the mountainous terrain can a be a time taking process.

There are 29 boats that the Indian Army will be getting in batches over the next few months. While 12 boats for surveillance and patrolling purposes were ordered in January this year, 17 others for ferrying troops that were to be part of a separate quick reaction team.

These boats can carry around 20 troops along with their equipment and can be used for quick mobilisation. In the pipeline are also the advanced version of the Isreali Heron drones to be deployed at the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

As the stalemate continues, China has also been enhancing its surveillance capabilities. Recently, China tested its new plateau type UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicle) in Kailash Range, south of Pangong lake where India vacated mountain tops as part of the disengagement.

The UAV intended to be used for surveillance on Indian positions close to the Kailash Range has been developed in Shaanxi and completed its first flying and control task at Gar Gunsa in Tibet Autonomous Region, according intelligence reports.

No Sign Of Status Quo Ante

India maintains that status quo as of April 2020 needs to be restored but barring the initial disengagement from north and south banks of Pangong lake, where tanks from both sides have pulled back to a comforting distance, nothing much has happened on the ground. Signs of a de-induction are nowhere visible.

This disengagement was expected to pave the way for a de-induction of troops, tanks, other heavy armour vehicles and eventually lead to de-escalation but that’s not happened.

Other friction points of Gogra, Hot Springs and Depsang are yet to be resolved. Tanks and troops from both sides have pulled back and there is no eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation but the build-up across eastern Ladakh continues.

India has already communicated that the disengagement needs to take place across eastern Ladakh in earlier meetings. The build-up in Depsang was not being considered a part of the current standoff that started in early May last year. As escalations had taken place here in 2013, India has insisted during military commander meetings that all issues across eastern Ladakh be resolved.

Courtesy: India Today