A year has passed since the clash in the Galwan Valley between India and China. The Chinese soldiers are still in the region with no evidence of a status quo ante. India continues to expand its military infrastructure to improve troop deployment, which is already in the range of 50,000 to 60,000 soldiers.
Building better road links for rapid troop mobilization and upgrading equipment are some of the key areas the Indian Army has focused on over the past year in order to be better prepared for Chinese acts of war in Ladakh as a definitive solution is in progress Seems distant.
With the Chinese intervening even after the initial withdrawal from Lake Pangong area in February, the Indian army has been preparing to exterminate it.
The Indian army continues its increased deployment of over 50,000 boots on the ground in Ladakh last year, including the severe winter when temperatures plummet to minus 40 degrees Celsius. India is logistically and strategically ready to face Chinese hostility if and when it happens, officials said.
Providing logistics during the peacekeeping operation is challenging in the winter, and with nearly five times as many troops deployed in the front line, it was all of the war machinery that was deployed.
After 11 rounds of military talks at corps commander level to find a solution, there is still no breakthrough despite the withdrawal from Lake Pangong.
Status at Galwan
Twenty Indian soldiers and an unspecified number of Chinese soldiers were killed in the clashes in Galwan. The clash took place on June 15 last year and sparked a war-like situation. Among the Indian soldiers who lost their lives trying to prevent a Chinese misfortune was the commandant of 16 Bihar Colonel Santosh Babu.
By the end of August 2020 there was another setup via the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and the picturesque Pangong Lake at 14,000 feet became a combat zone. India occupied the main mountain peaks of the Kailash Range overlooking the south shore of the lake.
According to the agreement between the two sides following the Galwan clash on June 15, the area was a patrol zone up to Patrolling Point (PP) 14. Both sides retreated 1.5 km each and the area turned into a buffer zone.
India objected to China’s observation posts near the PP 14 that led to the clash.
The Indian side retreated 700 meters. The first camp is 700 meters behind, followed by camp-2 and camp-3 at approximately the same distance with an Indian intervention to keep an eye on the Chinese activities.
Sources say that while no patrols will be conducted until PP 14 – the point of the clash, it is necessary to keep vigil by various surveillance methods to keep an eye on Chinese activities as they continue in large numbers not too far away the point at issue is present. However, no undesirable incident occurred.
Long distance in Ladakh
The improved boots locally in Ladakh could even become a permanent deployment strategy for years to come to challenge any Chinese mishap.
“There is a four to five year roadmap for border operations and logistics. Whatever was planned for Ladakh during this period was achieved last year to ensure that our troops can hold out for a long time, ”said an army official.
The former Director General Operations Lt. He said: “The status quo is still a long way off, but the fact that the withdrawal has taken place in the most strained area is a good sign. Since then, there has not been an escalation anywhere. It’s a game of patience. “
“There could have been a lot more Galwans and the Chinese would have planned it. But our action, led by Col Santosh Babu, deterred them, ”said Lieutenant General Bhatia.
The great challenge for the Indian army was to ensure the smooth deployment of the increased troops over the winter. In order to ensure the operational efficiency of the troops deployed in the winter, the Indian Army has completed the establishment of habitat facilities for all troops deployed in the sector.
“That was the first winter after the unrest in Ladakh. Now we are better equipped to continue the missions in the coming years with the same and even more numbers, ”said the Bundeswehr officer.
The shelter has been set up for troops to withstand the severe cold and wind chill and includes quick-set up modular shelters.
In addition to the smart camps with integrated facilities that have emerged over the years, additional ultra-modern habitats with integrated facilities for electricity, water, heating, health and hygiene have been created to accommodate the troops.
Reinforce surveillance
It’s not just the troops on the ground, but a change in tactics and increased surveillance to keep an eye on Chinese activities.
This includes new boats to be used in Pangong Lake, which has become a volatile point of friction over the years of conflict.
The Indian army has started delivering new boats suitable for use in Lake Pangong to carry and monitor troops, sources said.
There are two types of boats the army needs – one for patrol and surveillance and the other for quickly deploying troops on the shores of the lake to cut time as maneuvering in mountainous terrain can be a time-consuming process.
There are 29 boats that the Indian Army will be getting in batches over the next few months. While 12 boats were ordered in January of this year for surveillance and patrol purposes, 17 more were ordered for the transport of troops to be part of a separate rapid response team.
These boats, together with their equipment, can carry around 20 soldiers and can be used for rapid mobilization. The further developed version of the Isreali Heron drones, which will be used on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), is also in the pipeline.
While the stalemate persists, China has also improved its surveillance capabilities. China recently tested its new Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) in the Kailash Range south of Lake Pangong, where India released mountain tops as part of the retreat.
The UAV, which is to be used to monitor Indian positions near the Kailash Range, was developed in Shaanxi and, according to intelligence reports, completed its first flight and control task in Gar Gunsa in the Autonomous Region of Tibet.
No trace of the status quo ante
India claims the April 2020 status quo needs to be restored, but aside from the initial detachment from the north and south shores of Lake Pangong, where tanks have retreated to a comforting distance from either side, not much has happened on the ground. Signs of de-induction are nowhere visible.
This retreat was supposed to pave the way for a de-induction of troops, tanks and other heavy armored vehicles and eventually a de-escalation, but that did not happen.
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Other points of friction at Gogra, Hot Springs and Depsang have yet to be resolved. Tanks and troops from both sides have withdrawn and there is no face-to-face confrontation, but construction in eastern Ladakh continues.
India has already announced in previous meetings that the withdrawal must take place across East Ladakh. The construction in Depsang was not viewed as part of the current standoff that began in early May last year. Since there had been escalations here in 2013, India insisted at meetings of the military commanders that all problems in all of East Ladakh be resolved.
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