China makes fresh incursion bid, forced back by Indian troops

Close on the heels of over a dozen incursions since the face-off in Ladakh in April from across the Line of Actual Control, Chinese troops made a fresh attempt to violate the International Border at Chumar area in north-east of Leh on July 20, but were forced back by Indian troops.

The 'assertive posturing' by the Chinese troops, who had climbed a small mountain where they faced Indian troops, has been flashed to all units along the Sino-India border in the area to keep a strict vigil on their movement, official sources said.

Chinese troops claimed it was their territory and they were headed towards Tible area, five km deep into the Indian territory.

Chumar, which is located 300 km from Leh, is the last town in Ladakh after which Himachal Pradesh starts. This area also has the distinction of having a defined International Border with China.

Chinese troops, who were confronted almost bang on the border by an alert army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police troops, said they needed to follow the orders of the People’s Liberation Army headquarters and conduct some photography in Tible area.

After an usual face-off drill, the Chinese troops, who had to walk down a long stretch to reach Chumar, sought some food as they had run out of their stock, the sources said.

While no food was provided as the troops did not carry it with them, some cans of juices were given to the PLA soldiers, the sources said, adding the Chinese troops then retreated into their area.

All Indian units located along the LAC have been asked to maintain a tight vigil in their Area of Responsibilities and launch frequent patrols in the higher reaches, the sources said.

Chumar has seen a number of incursions in the recent past including an incident on June 17 when Chinese troops took away an army surveillance camera meant for keeping an eye on the PLA troops patrolling there.

This is the same area where Chinese troops triggered tension in April by smashing some bunkers and cutting wires of cameras installed at the border post.

Chumar has been an issue for China, which claims it as its own territory and has been frequenting it with helicopter incursions almost every year.

Last year, it dropped some of its soldiers in this region and dismantled the makeshift storage tents of the army and the ITBP.

This area is not accessible from the Chinese side whereas the Indian side has a road almost to the last point on which the army can carry a load up to nine tonnes.