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Army chief ends tour of Indo-China border

Accompanied by top military commanders, including Eastern Command chief Lieutenant General H R S Kalkat, Padmanabhan toured forward border posts in the Arunachal Pradesh.

"The army chief was briefed on the operational situation existing along the Line of Actual Control," an army commander told AFP. "He visited some forward posts and met troops deployed along the border," he added.

The visit came 10 days after Defence Minister George Fernandes made a day-long trip to the same region.

The defence ministry was alerted after Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Mukut Mithi accused China of violating the LAC and crossing into Indian territory.

Fernandes denied any incursions had taken place, but Mithi refused to withdraw the charges.

"I stand by whatever I said and our reports confirm Chinese troop incursions into Arunachal Pradesh," Mithi told AFP from Itanagar. "We cannot take things for granted and should be vigilant to avoid any confrontation," he added.

"We want to improve Sino-Indian ties no doubt, but at the same time we cannot compromise our territorial integrity." He argued.

Mithi said Chinese-built mule tracks had been uncovered by security agencies near the Kayela Pass in the state's Dibang Valley district, bordering Tibet.

"The mule tracks discovered by Indian Army soldiers goes to prove that the Chinese army intrudes into Indian territory," Mithi said. "They come in the guise of hunters, cross the LAC and at times even claim that parts of Arunachal belong to them."

India and China fought a bitter border war in 1962, with Chinese troops advancing deep into Arunachal Pradesh and inflicting heavy casualties.

China occupies 40,000 square kilometres of Indian territory in Jammu and Kashmir and lays claim to a wide swathe of territory in Arunachal Pradesh.

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