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Army chief begins inspection of Arunachal's border with China

Nitin Gogoi in Guwahati

The army chief, Gen S Padmanabhan, has begun a day-long tour of the forward areas in Arunachal Pradesh bordering China, top defence sources in Tezpur said.

Gen Padmanabhan, who arrived on his maiden visit to the north-east on Tuesday, is accompanied by the Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen HRS Kalkat and the GOC of the Tezpur-based 4 Corps, Lt Gen Mahesh Vij.

The army chief's visit assumes significance in the wake of the persistent claims made by the Arunachal Pradesh Chief minister Mukut Mithi that the Chinese have been repeatedly making intrusions into the Indian territory in the Tawang and Walong sectors of the border.

Defence Minister George Fernandes had visited Arunachal Pradesh on October 29 to make an on-the-spot study of the situation.

Fernandes had denied any knowledge of an incursion after his three-hour long whirlwind tour, which included a stopover at Arunachal Pradesh capital Itanagar and a meeting with Mithi.

Two days after Fernandes gave a clean chit to the Chinese, Mithi produced what he claimed was proof of Chinese incursion by showing video footage shot by Arunachalee villagers along the border. The villagers also said they had found a lot of Chinese-made goods deep inside Indian territory. "The tell-tale signs left behind by the Chinese troops is there for all to see," Mithi had claimed. "The recent discovery of the mule trail by the Army and intelligence proves beyond doubt that the Chinese army has intruded into Indian territory and the entire border is not safe."

China, however, has strongly rejected Indian allegations that its troops were making regular incursions across the sensitive border. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao told journalists in Beijing that there was no substance to the allegations.

"The Chinese side has all along strictly observed the Line of Actual Control along the China-India border and has been making unremitting efforts towards the maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the border areas, therefore the relevant allegations by the Indian side are baseless," said Zhu.

India and China fought a bitter border war in 1962, with Chinese troops advancing deep into Arunachal Pradesh and inflicting heavy casualties on Indian troops. India says China still holds 40,000 sq km of its territory in Kashmir, while China lays claim to a wide swathe of territory in Arunachal Pradesh.

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