NEW DELHI, Aug 20 � Close on the heels of reports of incursion into the Depsang Valley in Ladakh, comes the report of a fresh face-off between Chinese troops and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at Chaglagham in Anjou district of Arunachal Pradesh.
General secretary of BJP and former MP, Tapir Gao today claimed that troops belonging to the People�s Liberation Army (PLA) have intruded at least 60-70 km into Indian territory after over-running at least six of the nine camps, early this month. A face-off like situation exists at the international border inside the McMahon Line, alleged Tapir Gao.
Talking to this newspaper, he said on receipt of the information about the incursion, which reportedly took place on August 12, a group of BJP workers were despatched to the Chaglagham area. �They came back yesterday and reported that a standoff-like situation exists,� he said.
The group has reported that at least 200 PLA personnel are occupying the camps, which earlier served as temporary bases for Indian forces inside the McMahon Line. The area is near Walong while Chaglagham is the last administrative circle of the Arunachal Pradesh Government, about 108 km from the McMahon Line.
Tapir Gao claimed that 1,500-1,600 local people of the area are living in fear ever since the incursion took place. The local administration has informed Itanagar about the incident, he said.
So far, no Indian troops have been deployed and some 70 to 80 ITBP personnel are locked in the standoff, he alleged.
Anjou district is strategically important because it borders China and Myanmar, said the former BJP Lok Sabha MP.
Demanding immediate deployment of Army troops, Tapir Gao called for immediate intervention of Defence Minister AK Antony. The Defence Minister should immediately order Army deployment and personally visit Chaglagham to take stock of the situation, he demanded.
Interestingly, reports of the fresh incursion have come within days of Beijing submitting a Border Defence Cooperation Agreement. The Defence Minister, in a Lok Sabha reply, said that a draft of a Border Defence Cooperation Agreement has been received from the Chinese side.
Meanwhile, the 5th India-China Strategic Dialogue was held at New Delhi today. The Indian side was led by Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh and the Chinese side was led by Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin. The discussions covered bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest, official sources said.
The two sides discussed several issues, including enhancing understanding on the utilisation of trans-border river waters and expanding bilateral trade and investment while addressing problems of the large and growing deficit faced by India.
The meeting, significantly, also deliberated on the ways to maintain peace and tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the India-China border areas. The two sides also discussed the possibility of a visit to China, later this year, by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. The potential and prospects for the BCIM economic cooperation was also touched upon.
Vice Foreign Minister Liu later also called on the External Affairs Minister. The Sixth India-China Strategic Dialogue will be held at Beijing, said sources.
