India’s Top Army Commanders Meet in the Wake of Ongoing Standoff with China

New Delhi (Sputnik): India and China have reinforced troops along their shared border amid a standoff between the armies which has lasted several weeks. The face-off began after India started construction of a key road along the loosely-demarcated Line of Actual Control in Ladakh. Both sides have also increased deployment of troops in the region.

In the wake of the ongoing stand-off with China, India’s top army commanders are holding a three-day conference on Wednesday in New Delhi. The biannual Army Commanders’ Conference is expected to brainstorm the emerging security situation, key policy decisions relating to the army and overall challenges facing the country.

Two commanders, from the army’s Northern and Eastern regions, are expected to brief the top brass about the current situation along the border with China and Pakistan during the conference.

There were also reports that the Indian armed forces' heads had briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday (26 May) about the latest situation related to the India-China and India-Nepal borders.

Meanwhile, there are also reports that New Delhi has enhanced its surveillance along the entire border with China to monitor any transgression attempts by the Chinese Army.

Tensions between the two armies have flared up since the last week of April, after Chinese personnel entered the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh with a vehicle. However, the Indian Army confronted them, and the matter was resolved.

The situation, however, escalated in early May, when the two neighbours became embroiled in a physical altercation over infrastructure development along the 4,000 km LAC. Over a dozen troops from both sides were injured in clashes at Pangong Tso Lake in eastern Ladakh on 5 May, followed by Naku La in Sikkim on 9 May. However, there was no official confirmation of the incident.

China had accused the Indian Army of crossing into its territory and of “blocking” its patrols and “attempting to unilaterally change the status” on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Sikkim and Ladakh.

India and China share a border from Arunachal Pradesh in the northeast to Sikkim in the centre and Ladakh in the northern region. While the border passes on land in most regions, in Pangong Tso it passes through water. India controls 45-kilometre long lake in the western portion, while the rest is under Chinese control. Most of the clashes between Indian and Chinese armies take place near the disputed portion of the lake.