Explained: Where and why there is dispute on the border between India and China?

Posted on 28th May 2020 by rohit kumar

The land border of China's neighboring country China is contiguous with 14 different countries of the world. There is not a single country with which there is no border dispute with China. But China is hardly interested in a border dispute with India, so it keeps arguing with India on some pretext. There is a 3,488 km long border between India and China. This limit is called LAC ie Line of Actual Control or Actual Line of Control. This LAC passes through the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. This 3,488 km long border line is divided into three parts from a strategic point of view. The first part is the western sector, which includes the border with Ladakh. It is 1597 km long. The second is the intermediate sector, which includes the border with Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. It is 545 km long. The third is the eastern sector, in which the border with Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim is kept. It is 1346 km long. India and China have been in dispute for a long time over this Line of Control. Sometimes this dispute stops, sometimes it raises the head again. We try to understand the boundary dispute between China with India, where and why.

 

 

1. Aksai Chin

Aksai falls in the western sector of China LAC. Aksai Chin is only part of India. When Article 370 was removed from Jammu and Kashmir in India and Home Minister Amit Shah was making a statement in Parliament about this, he said clearly that when I speak Jammu and Kashmir, it means Pak Occupied Kashmir and Aksai Chin also it happens. In the 1950s, China built a road in Aksai Chin. India came to know about this late. And when India opposed it, it resulted in war. The 1962 Indo-China war took place. At that time, China occupied this area of ​​India. Since then, Aksai Chin has been in the possession of China, but India has never given up its claim. Hence, a situation of dispute arises between the two countries regarding Aksai Chin.

 

 

2. Galvan Valley

A part of the actual line of control between China and India passes through the Chinese-occupied Aksai Chin and India's Union Territory of Ladakh. Galvan valley is on this LAC. This valley extends from the southern part of Xinjiang in China to Ladakh in India. In recent times, India is building a road with the intention of strengthening its military capability in this area, because a part of it also connects with Pakistan. At the same time, China has already built a road in its occupied area. Now when the road is being built by India, China is objecting. The border dispute that is going on between India and China at the moment is about this Galvan valley. India could not make its own road, so China has deployed more troops. India has also deployed troops in its area and the road construction work is going on.

 

 

3. Paigong Tso Lake

Pagong Tso Lake is the biggest hand in the border dispute between India and China. About 134 kilometers of this lake, 45 kilometers of this lake is in India, while 90 kilometers of area falls in the occupied territory of China. Situated at an altitude of about 14000 feet, this lake passes through the actual line of control between China and India, on which both China and India soldiers are deployed. The problem here is that China tries to decide the line of actuarial control by itself here and for this, it has clashed with India many times. China also used this lake to attack India in the 1962 war. The soldiers of India and China have collided in this lake many times and each time the reason for this is the border dispute.

 

 

3. Tawang

Tawang is one of the few religious shrines of Buddhism. It is an integral part of India, which falls in Arunachal Pradesh. But China considers this Tawang a part of southern Tibet. In 1914, when India was under British rule and Tibet was an independent country, an agreement was reached between Tibet and British India, in which Tawang of Arunachal Pradesh was considered part of British India. But China claims that at the time of the 1914 agreement it was not present and now that Tibet is a part of it, then Tawang should also get it. Due to this, many war-like situations have arisen between China and India, but no country is ready to give up its claim.

 

 

4. Doklam

Doklam is on the border of India, China and Bhutan, which is the eastern sector in terms of LAC. In India, it borders Sikkim. If we skip the 1962 war, the longest border dispute between India and China has been about this area, where the armies of the two countries were standing in a face-to-face battle for 73 days. In the year 2017, China was building a road in this area, India strongly opposed it and deployed its army. China also deployed its army in response. But India did not withdraw its claim. Eventually, after 73 days of negotiations, the issue could be resolved. However, sometimes the situation gets tense here, because Bhutan also makes its claim on Doklam and India supports this claim of Bhutan. At the same time, China claims that Doklam is its part.

 

5. Nathula Pass

The Nathula Pass is very important for India's strategic vision. In terms of LAC, it is a part of Eastern Sector. It connects the state of Sikkim in India to the Chumba Valley in South Tibet. The Nathula Pass was the only route through which the travelers of Kailash Mansarovar entered Tibet before the new road to Lipulekh was built. Apart from this, the height of this pass is about 14,200 feet, which is very important for India from the military point of view. But China continues to object to the boundary of this pass. About 54 km from Sikkim's capital, Gangtok, there was a clash between the soldiers of India and China on both sides of this pass in the second week of this month. Nathula Pass was closed in 1962 when India and China were in a tizzy. But business was the need of both countries and especially China had to do business with India, so this pass was opened in the year 2006.