Monthly Archives: August 2018

ribune News Service

New Delhi, June 13

At a time when China has opened fronts against Taiwan and India, Indians for the first time came on the streets of Taipei to thank the country for its success in containing the COVID-19 pandemic.

Indians reportedly gathered at a park in New Taipei City before taking the motorcade of some 50 cars and motorcycles to the northeastern county of Yilan and back, a total distance of around 120 km.

The participants wore matching T-shirts that read “Taiwan Can Help” and flags that read “Health for All, Taiwan Can Help” and “Thank You Taiwan”. The rally by Indians in Taipei and their thanking Taiwan for combating the pandemic holds a deep significance in global politics.

The event also had Independence-minded Taiwan government’s indirect blessings. It nudged companies into sponsoring the rally and the chief local bureaucrat attended the opening ceremony.

The event’s main organiser, 38-year-old Manoj Kriplani, reportedly said the motor rally was attended and supported by various Indian community groups in Taiwan.

Under Chinese pressure, India, along with most countries of the world, did not give diplomatic recognition to Taiwan. And any such move irks Beijing.

Also, there is a clash of views on the question of health.

China managed to eject Taiwan from its observer status at the WHO’s annual meeting. It is today vigorously resisting a demand by 60 countries to seek its re-inclusion after it emerged that Taiwan was among the first to raise the flag on the epidemic in Wuhan but was ignored because of its pariah status.

One of the participants was a 40-year resident of Taiwan, Harkishin Chablani, president of the Indian’s Association of Taipei, who said the event was also dedicated to thanking the country’s health workers.

Another participant, Rajan Khera, president of the Indian Cultural Committee of Taipei, said Taiwan deserved to be thanked because the country did not just help its citizens but people all over the world who need help.

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 13

Nepal’s House of Representatives on Saturday unanimously passed a Constitutional amendment revising the map on its coat of arms to include three areas of Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura that India later in the evening asserted were part of its territory.

Passed by Nepal’s Lower House, the amendment Bill will now go to the Upper House where the ruling NCP holds 50 of the 59 elected seats.

The die for a change in the Constitution was cast about 10 days ago when Nepal’s Lower House unanimously approved a resolution to change the map on its coat of arms. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) here accused Nepal of violating the “current understanding” to hold talks on outstanding boundary issues. “We have already made our position clear on this matter. This artificial enlargement of claims is not based on historical fact or evidence and is not tenable,” said MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava.

Nepal’s map change was in response to two Indian moves over eight months. In early November, India released a new political map. Its basic aim was to reflect the new reality of the erstwhile state of J&K divided into two Union Territories, but it also included Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura. India handled that dissonance by promising dialogue.

On May 8, the controversy was re-stoked when Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated a road from Dharchula in Uttarakhand to the controversial spot of Lipulekh. This set in motion a political process that has led to changes in Nepal’s political map and while Nepal’s PM and Foreign Ministry publicly asked India to hold parleys, especially at the level of foreign secretaries, it was on Saturday that the MEA seemed to suggest that it had made an offer for talks.

The amendment in the Lower House hung in balance as the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) was 10 seats short of the needed two-thirds majority. But Madhesi parties, who were asked to display their nationalist credentials, and the Nepali Congress came on board, making the passage of the resolution a fait accompli.

Sandeep Dikshit

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 13

Ahead of its election to the UN Security Council (UNSC) for a two-year term, India’s new Permanent Representative to the UN, TS Tirumurti, said the UN needs to change to reflect the contemporary realities to enable them to remain effective and credible.

‘Rules neither transparent nor consistent’

• Learning from the opaque methods of the UNSC in trying to get Masood Azhar blacklisted, India feels that rules are neither transparent nor consistent
• For instance, there is no uniformity in the procedures of decision-making by various sanctions committees, India stated at the UN last month

Learning from the opaque methods of the UNSC and its sanctions committee in trying to get Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar blacklisted as an international terrorist, India feels that rules are neither transparent nor consistent. For instance, there is no uniformity in the procedures of decision-making by various sanctions committees, India stated at the UN last month.

There is a sense that too much of their work is being carried out without the full knowledge of all UNSC members. Neither is there any fixed practice in terms of their reporting cycles — there are differing time-periods and methodologies for reporting of similarly constituted bodies handling similar work.

Another worrying aspect relates to lack of transparency and consistency in making public the decisions of these bodies. For instance, in many cases, decisions regarding delisting requests made to some of these bodies by sanctioned individuals and entities are not made public at all.

Some subsidiary bodies do not even mention that any such request was received and declined from known and listed terrorist entities or individuals. In effect, the failed efforts of terrorists to get themselves de-listed are shrouded in secrecy.

The non-permanent nations have already been making efforts in this direction and won a few minor victories. Due to one of them, India and the other non-permanent members will be invited to observe the meetings of the UNSC and its subsidiary bodies three months before they formally begin their terms on January 1, 2021.

Ahead of the June 17 poll, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had outlined New Delhi’s priorities for its candidature. Under the rubric of ‘New Orientation For A Reformed Multilateral System’ (NORMS), he said India aims to create new opportunities in five key segments — general progress, effective response to international terrorism, reforming multilateral systems, comprehensive approach to peace and security and technology with a human touch.

ndia has supported a draft resolution to identify the ‘zoonotic source’ of the novel coronavirus, and Beijing is obviously unhappy. Hence, the Chinese muscle-flexing on the LAC.by Maroof Raza 

t is rare for India to be embroiled in boundary Idisputes with its neighbours, others than with Pakistan and China. And with both of them, the background and the pattern of escalation is predictable. But this week, a new entrant to the equation is Nepal, which for many years was taken for granted by New Delhi. However, in the last three years, anti-Indian sentiment has become quite strong in Kathmandu, after the Madhesi agitations of 2017 – demanding Constitutional reforms – that brought Nepal to a standstill. It was widely believed in Nepal that Delhi was behind it all. So, an angry and vulnerable Nepal was roped in by China – always looking to pressurise India – with the lure of funding that Nepal desperately needs. 

Kathmandu has, thus, initiated what New Delhi has called ‘cartographic aggression’, with the recently released Nepalese maps that show the Kalapani and Lipulekh areas as its territory, even though these have been with India since the 18th century and are crucial to not only India’s military defences against China on the LAC (Line of Actual Control) but also for the Kailash-Mansarovar yatris. It is thus apparent that this is all part of a bigger game being played out by China. 

Ever since China came under pressure for the coronavirus mess – that has led to a worldwide human  and economic disaster – Beijing has begun to challenge the international community by its aggressive messaging to Taiwan, at the South China Sea and on the Sino-Indian boundary. This is partly to convey that China will go ahead with its unfulfilled agenda to absorb territories it still lays claim on. In the case of India, China has in the past used its transgressions to pressurise India when it wants a favourable diplomatic outcome, like the summits between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping, in Bishkek or Mahabalipuram. Currently, though, it is China’s way of expressing displeasure with two recent Indian initiatives. 

One is India’s recent decision to announce new norms for FDI for its neighbours. China has been added to the list now. This seemed to be aimed at Chinese companies, which are known to make predatory moves when other countries’ economic situation is vulnerable, as India’s can be in the post- COVID-19 phase. Chinese investments in Indian companies are in the range of $8 billion in brands ranging from Flipkart to Paytm and Oppo to pharma companies. China could push for more. The other is India’s decision to join a demand by 62 countries to push for anti-China initiatives at the World Health Organisation, that China must share the blame for the  spread of the Wuhan virus. India has supported a draft resolution to identify the ‘zoonotic source’ of the novel coronavirus, and Beijing is obviously unhappy. 

Hence, the Chinese are muscle-flexing on the LAC. Over the past week, military commanders from China and India have engaged in talks to bring down tension on the Sino-Indian boundary along the LAC in Ladakh facing the Aksai Chin region, near the Pangong Tso Lake. It was here that troops of both countries came to blows two weeks ago, and even now tensions are high in that area compared to Sikkim, where altercations between troops had also taken place. But India is no military pushover anymore, as China learnt to its embarrassment most recently during the 72-day Doklam standoff. 

The current standoff seems to follow the opposite pattern of the Doklam standoff. While it was India that had objected to the Chinese construction of a road in the Doklam plateau, near the Sino-Indian boundary in Sikkim – in the current standoff it is China that has raised objections to the construction of a road, by India in Ladakh – in the Galwan river area, about 200 kilometres north of the Pangong Tso lake. This is an area that has remained with India, even during and after the 1962 border conflict. 

In fact, the roots of the 1962 Sino-Indian border conflict can be traced to the Chinese occupation of the Aksai Chin area – that lies east of Ladakh – in the 1950s. The Chinese, however, claimed it was the Indians troops who were ‘nibbling’ into their territories when in reality it was Chinese troops who had been patrolling even beyond their agreed boundaries in Aksai Chin through the 1950s. Indian troops were however restrained in showing their presence over Aksai Chin, in the 50s. “It is perhaps worth pointing out that at that time the Chinese claim over Aksai Chin was precisely that – there were no checkpoints at Aksai Chin to suggest that the territory belonged to India,” noted the late eminent strategic affairs thinker K. Subrahmanyam. 

Moreover, when the matter was brought to the notice of Pandit Nehru’s government, they chose to ignore it. Eventually, when the matter became public knowledge, India stepped its patrolling. This led to disagreements over the boundary in Ladakh and the then North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA, now Arunachal Pradesh), and thus, China eventually attacked India’s ill-equipped and ill-prepared troops on the front lines in October 1962. The rest, as they say, is history. 

The other area of current Sino-Indian standoff is on the Sikkim part of the LAC. It was near this area that the Doklam standoff some years ago had become an  embarrassment for China, as India troops refused to blink. In this context, an earlier incident in 1967, near Nathu La and Cho La is worth mentioning. As the Chinese troops challenged the Indian Army’s efforts to lay barbed wires fencing on the agreed boundary in Sikkim, in September 1967, Indian troops refused to back off. It eventually led to a heavy exchange of fire – with machine guns, mortars and artillery – at the orders of Major General Sagat Singh (who later liberated Dacca). It left a few hundred dead on both sides, but the Chinese backed off. The Chinese had learnt that the Indian Army was no longer the political pawn that it was in 1962. 

No wonder, those in the know of these facts, know that China respects you if you talk from a position of strength, as the Somdorung Chu incident of 1987 had led China to ask for talks to agree on an alignment of the LAC. In response to China’s intrusions in Arunachal Pradesh, troops were rushed in (under a military exercise, Op-Chequerboard) by General Sundarji, in April 1987. Two brigades (over 3,000 troops) were flown in by helicopters from the Assam plains to Somdorung Chu valley and they surrendered the Chinese. It had so rattled the Chinese that they soon asked for talks. 

Thus, during the eighth round of Sino-Indian border talks in November 1987, a decision was taken to upgrade the talks from the bureaucratic to the political level. And in 1998, a Joint Working Group (JWG) was set up to discuss, among other things, the alignment of the LAC. However, these efforts have had little progress as the repeated Chinese boundary intrusions have shown. 

It is well-known that China has used Pakistan to be its frontman in Kashmir for decades. China’s interests in north and east of the Kashmir and Ladakh is essentially to garner whatever water resources it can for its development agenda. And now it has a newfound friend in Nepal, in its boundary games. With Kathmandu’s leanings towards Beijing becoming stronger in recent years – as Beijing buys out support with its deep pockets – the rise of anti-India sentiment is visible among Nepalese politicians. 

As an economically stretched Kathmandu sought financial bailouts, it was the Chinese that roped Nepal into joining their Belt and Road Initiative. This led to Chinese promises of investing money into the country – like it has done with the CPEC in Pakistan. But Chinese investments come with stringent financial and territorial implications, as Sri Lanka and the Maldives know! 

For Nepal, the payback price is perhaps to needle India for now with its latest map-making effort with its claims on Kalapani and Lipulekh areas, on the junction of the Nepal-India-China border. Kathmandu now says this area belongs to Nepal and has recently released Nepalese maps that show them as such. However, India’s claims are based on earlier maps of 1879 that were acceptable to both sides until now. This shows these areas belong to India. 

Moreover, India too had recently published maps, 

some months before the Nepalese ones, showing these areas India’s. This area has been an agreed meeting point on the LAC for Sino-Indian troops and apart from it being a site for border meetings and trade, India has built a new there for the Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrimage. It would be logical to infer a Chinese role in this controversy. 

This article appeared on timesnownews.com | Reproduced with permission of the author 

‘Reached Consensus on Ladakh Standoff’: China 

Cstarted hina said implementing today that Indian the and “positive Chinese troops consensus” have reached by the senior military officials of the two countries on June 6 aimed at “easing” the situation along the Line of Actual Control. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson’s remarks came a day after officials in New Delhi suggested that armies of India and China have undertaken a “limited disengagement” in a few areas in eastern Ladakh in a demonstration of their intent to end the boundary standoff peacefully ahead of another round of military talks on Wednesday. 

Asked about the reports of the troops on both sides disengaging and moving back to their previous positions, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing in Beijing that both sides are taking steps to ease the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). “Recently the diplomatic and military channels of China and India held effective communication on the situation along the border and 

reached positive consensus. The two sides are following this consensus to take actions to ease the situation along the borders,” the spokesperson said. 

Sources said that the two armies “disengaged” at three locations (Patrolling Point 14), Patrolling Point 15 and Hot Springs (Patrolling Point 17) by 2-2.5 kms. Talks have been underway at the military level as well led by Lt Gen Harinder Singh, commander of the 14 Corps from the Indian-side and Maj Gen Liu Lin of the Southern Xinjiang Military District from the Chinese side. Sources said the PLA’s military mobilization, which includes air defence radars, fighter bombers, rocket forces and jammers are “worrying” which has been “mirrored” by India on its side. Army said a complete withdrawal and maintaining a status quo to pre-May 5 level will require primarily diplomatic effort and long and multiple military talks at the Divisional Commander (Major General), Brigade Commander (Brigadier) and Battalion Commander (Colonel) level. 

If the salary of the defence officer is the same as that of the civilian equivalents, then what “exceptionally high” pension is the CDS talking of? Differentiating between Jawans and officers in terms of tax exemption violates the basic premise behind disability compensation. It also will place on equal terms a civilian and a military officer disability – the former’s disability likely an accident, while the latter’s is more than a reasonable certainty

by Veteran Cdr RW Pathak (inputs from Wg Cdr Ravi Mani & Cdr Pokar Ram)

Aanir veda.com, depos ing before the
Parliamentary Standing Committee on
Defencechaired byBJP leaderJual Oram, theCDS said
that there was a “wide variation” in the disability
pensions of Army Jawans and officers and that it was
“creating heartburn”, which “is not being understood
by officers”. It is rather strange that this senior officer
has not even bothered to understand the principles
behind compensationfordisability.
He further said in his deposition that, “One of the
ways of narrowing this gap is this. Those who are
drawing exceptionally high pensions, can they not pay
a little amount of income tax? It is not applicable to a
Jawan because, in spite of his disability pension being
given to him, he is not coming into the tax bracket of `
5 lakh as per the new tax regime.” An officer of the
Armed Forces draws the same salary as his civilian

equivalent and yetthe CDS has the gumption to make
a statement that Armed Forces officers draw
“exceptionally high pension” when pension is a
product of salary and thus if the salary of defence
officer is the same as that of the civilian equivalents
then what “exceptionally high” pension is he talking
of?
This approach places the cart before the horse.
Instead of understanding the concept of
“compensating” a disabled soldier (officer or
JCO/NCO/Jawan) for the loss of limbs and/or
functionality, it goes off at a tangent, and places a
premium on punishing an officer for being more
qualified and better paid than a Jawan. In fact, it even
questions the very premise of different pay at different
levels, which is auniversal factof life inall professions,
civil or military. That the officer, at the pinnacle of
leadership at the operational level, is paid more and

by Veteran Cdr RW Pathak (inputs from Wg Cdr Ravi Mani & Cdr Pokar Ram)

If the salary of the defence officer is the same as that of the civilian equivalents, then what“exceptionally high” pension is the CDS talking of? Differentiating between Jawans andofficers in terms of tax exemption violates the basic premise behind disability compensation.It also will place on equal terms a civilian and a military officer disability – the former’sdisability likely an accident, while the latter’s is more than a reasonable certainty
Why ShouldVeterans DrawingExceptionally
High Pensions Grudge IT Deductions? has more responsibility on his shoulders has escaped theworthyGeneral. By advocating paymentof taxondisabilitypension for officers, the CDS is guilty of overlooking the basic premise behind sanction of disability pensions for
Veterans world-wide. Disability pensions are both, an
attempt to try and compensate for that which cannot
be compensated-loss of limbs and/orfunctionality, as
well asanassurance toserving soldiers thattheycango
to war and do their best without worrying what will
happen to them if they are wounded and disabled.
Thus, it underwrites morale and performance by the
serving soldier. Not taxing such pensions is another
benefit, indirectlygiven. Differentiating between Jawans and officers in terms of tax exemption violates the basic premise
behind disability compensation. It also will place on
equal terms a civilian and a military officerdisability –
the former’s disability likely an accident, while the
latter’s is more than a reasonable certainty (and hence
the difference in insurance premiums). Let us look at
how compensation amount is derived at in cases
involving compensation in various accident cases. My
search for a possible basis for compensation lead to a
basic fundamental basis as: “It is given for the
atonement of injury caused and the intention behind
grant of compensation is to put back the injured party
as far as possible in the same position, as if the injury
has nottakenplace, bywayof grantof pecuniary relief.
(Forclarifications referhpsja.nic.in/jaarticle.pdf).
Further in a recent judgment dated of the SC on
February 5, 2020 (civil appeal no. 735 of 2020, arising
out of Special Leave Petition [C] No.15504 of 2019) has
listed some of the points to be considered when
deciding compensation. Thesepointsare:  Future medical treatment(Not applicable in the case of disabilitycases)  Loss of marriage prospects (May be applicable in somecases)  Pain, suffering and loss of amenities (Applicable to
all defencedisabilitycases)  Attendant charges (Paid as CAA in cases of 100% ,disability if sanctioned. However the amount is a
pittance of what a Constant Attendant service would
costtoday)  Loss of earnings (Not applicable to Veterans as they
are paid Disability Element and Service Element.
However in the case of percentage disability being
lower, the amount gets reduced than in an accident
case)
 Expenses relating to treatment, hospitalization,
medicines, transportation etc. (Not entirely applicable but certainly in certain injuries the costs of treatment hospitalization and medicines is incurred despite the ECHS scheme which though supposed to be cash less is certainly not when it comes to
emergency treatment where no hospitals are on their
panel)
 No pecuniary damages (general damages), loss of
expectation of life (shortening of normal longevity. In
certaincases, applicabletoDefence forces too)
Finally it all basically comes down to what was the
earning capacity and loss of the same due to
injury/death. It logically follows that the
compensation paid to someone who was getting a
salary at the bottom of the pyramid has to be lower
than someone who is atthe top of the pyramid. So one
can see that the matter of compensation for injuries
sustained is certainly not as simple as is made out to
be. Most medical boards had been arbitrary in
assigning percentage disabilities and aggravation or
attributability for the injury/disease. That is the
reason why broad-banding was introduced to reduce
arbitrariness ingrantof percentagedisability.
Further refinement of the process of disability
assessment is the way to go. A progressive step in this
direction is the broad-banding of disability. If this
aspect of the issue is made more realistic and less
arbitrary, thenthequestionof ensuring thatDisability
Pension is enough or not, only needs to be indexed to
pay and pensions as well as the special needs of
disabled combatants. As mentioned earlier,
exempting such pension from tax is logical and the
rightthing todo, basing onthe loss tothe individual as
a human being at his station in life. The CDS further
goes on to add insult to injury by stating that Army
officers drawing “exceptionally high” pension should
not grudge Income Tax! The CDS has conveniently
forgotten to state that about what happens to the civil
side:
 All civilian employees, irrespective of age on getting
disability, arekeptinservicetill 60 years irrespectiveof
productivity, whereas in defence they are thrown out
tofend forthemselves. Noassurance foremployment.
 The disabled civilians get a minimum special family
pension of `18000 whereas in defence, their families
are deprived of the same unless it is proved beyond
doubt that death was caused due to disease/injury on
thebasisof whichhewas invalidated out.
It seems that the CDS still carries the hangover of
the ill-considered remedy (proposed when he was
COAS) to the problem of eliminating cases wherein a
few misuse the process to getthemselves downgraded
with dishonest motives. The solution to that problem

due to a few black sheep at senior levels is to enhance
scrutiny and review processes to eliminate or
minimise fraud (in collusion with the medical
fraternity). It does notlie in off the cuff, ill-considered
solutions that will strike at morale of the Armed
Forces.
The CDS seems to believe that as the singular head

of the three services he can now force his ill-
considered remedy to the problem down the throat of

theNavyand Airforce. Thesofardefined roleof CSD is
limited to operations, logistics, transport, training,
support services, communications and repairs and

maintenance of the three services. This certainly does
not implicitly cover pay and pensions. One wonders
why he is intervening in matters apparently not in his
purview. Hopefully therespectivechiefswill offertheir
individual inputtothegovernment.
The worthy CDS has probably forgotten that the
Indian Army has been operating in conditions of
undeclared war since long, resulting indailycasualties
the like of which no other Armed Forces in the world
face. Let us not tamper with the essential morale and
well-being of ourcombatants.

Cdr RW Pathak (Retd) is a member and coordinator of the internet-based Veterans Pension Group (veterans-pension-
cell@googlegroups.com) that works to help defence pensioners. He was also at the forefront of the agitation to deny the defence land to former President Pratibha Patil for her retirement home. He can be contacted on 9822329340/02025655792 or on Email raviwarsha@gmail.com.

China’s current military thinking and modernization has been greatly influenced by their study of 21st century wars including both the Iraq Wars and the one in Kosovo as also the conflict in Libya. Crucial role played by precision weapons and air power have been imbibed by PLA. In addition, the internet emerging as an all pervasive means of passing information is
a lucrative target for cyber-attack. Large scale cyber-attacks in Russo-Georgian War has not gone unnoticed by Chinese strategists. Accordingly, China has raised a number of cyber and
electronic warfare brigades/regiments. The Chinese way of fighting conventional war can be termed ‘e-Conventional Warfare’, similar to e-governance.

COVID‐19 & CHINA
International geopolitical situation is undergoing
a churning due to spread of COVID-19 from China.
China isundertremendouspressure fromtheWestern
and other nations for an international inquiry. It
certainly has a fall out on domestic politics of China.
There are likely to be strong antigovernment and anti
Xi Ping sentiments in China for the manner he has
handled the COVID-19 crises and his earlier decision
to become lifelong Head of State. The trade war
between USA and China has also adversely affected
Chineseeconomy.
Under such international pressure and domestic
dissent, it is natural forXi Jingping to somehow divert
the attention of his people, PLA and other nations
towards somenewcrises. Indiacanbeasofttarget, as it
is likely to take away good part of manufacturing
business from China. One can already see rather
serious clashes between PLA and Indian Army along
the LAC in Ladakh, Central and Eastern Sectors.
Indian Defence Forces have to be prepared to face any
escalation along the Indo-Tibetan Border, side by side
Pakistan also livening up theLine of Control (LOC) in

J&K and the IB. This may happen now or at a future
date.
China and Pakistan, not only have a strategic
convergence but a tie up as well, to keep India down.
China has become a great power economically and
militarily and the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA)
military potential is at least twice, if not three times
that of India. The ratio worsens when military
potential of Pakistanis takencognizanceof.
PLA’s prime adversary being America, it is rapidly
modernizing and well on its way to implementing
latest technologies including space, cyber, electronic
warfare, information warfare, network centric
warfare. It is even incorporating latest inventions and
technologies like hypersonic weapons, artificial
intelligenceetc. IndianArmy, byand large is still inthe
process of discussing and just aboutintroducing a few
newtechnologies.
At this slow pace Indian Army is long way from
modernizing. It is not the fault of the Army entirely.
Our bureaucracy and politicians have to take major
blame. India cannot therefore match China militarily
and especially as far as any joint and coordinated

misadventurebyChinaand Pakistanisconcerned.
PLA’S WHITE PAPER 2019 – ITS MILITARY
THINKING, MODERNIZATION AND STRATEGY
FOR AN “INFORMATIONIZED WAR”
China’ s current military thinking and
modernization has been greatly influenced by their
study of 21st Century wars including both the Iraq
Wars and the one in Kosovo as also the conflict in
Libya. Crucial roleplayed byprecisionweaponsand air
power have been imbibed by PLA. In addition, the
internet emerging as anall pervasive means of passing
information in all facets of life and consequently
becoming a lucrative target for cyber-attack, is
another aspect thoroughly analyzed by the Chinese.
Large scale cyber-attacks in Russo-Georgian War and
their crippling effect has not gone unnoticed by
Chinese strategists. Accordingly, China has raised a
number of cyber and electronic warfare
brigades/regiments.
The Chinese way of fighting conventional war can

be termed ‘e-Conventional Warfare’, similar to e-
governance. The PLA has concluded that in order to

hastenthedefeatoftheenemy:
 Information warfare should be used in its strategic
and tactical domains as a prelude as also concurrently
with Kinetic operations. Informationized warfare
aims atinducing the collapse of the opponents resolve
and will tofight.
 Strategic domain includes, disinformation, molding
opinion in own favour i.e. perception management,
deception, attacking adversary’s critical civil and
military infrastructure and the very functioning of a
nation’s life.
 Tactical domain deals with disabling adversary’s
tactical command and control, communications
systems, ISR capabilities, weapons and their control
systems, by cyber, electronic warfare and kinetic
meansand safeguarding own.
China would not take any large scale military
action ina hurry. Itwill be averydeliberatedecision by
the top most leadership, which would vet the
operational plans. Adequate forces would be made
available to the overall commander to achieve
required superiority. China will mount a well thought
out information and diplomatic campaign aimed at
international opinion, Indian leadership, people and
military. Side by side it will make Pakistan carry out
similar actions and try and divert Indian attention
from the northern border. Conduct large scale
cyber/network warfare in the strategic domain, either
before or concurrently with shooting war, to weaken
ourresolvetostand uptoitsdemands.

PLA would resort to sustained air plus precision

kinetic weapons like missiles, rockets, artillery, anti-
radiationweaponsattacks inadditiontocyber-attacks

t o b l i n d I n d i a n A r m e d F o r c e s b y
degrading/destroying Intelligence, Surveillance and
Reconnaissance (ISR) systems, including satellites,
command and control infrastructure, so that the
commanders and staff are unable to make cohesive
operational picture.
Paralyze the command and control structure so
that the commanders and staff are unable to make
cohesive operational picture and plan and conduct
operations effectively. Command and Control
Structure implies headquarters, command posts,
commanders and staff, communication and
information networks, especially the nodes. This is a
significant change that has come aboutin the conduct
of 21st century wars. In the wars in the past, air attacks
were aimed more at adversary’s fighting troops,
weapons, transportation system and logistics
installations, rather than command and control
structure.
INDIA’S GRAND STRATEGY: DETERRANCE/
DISSUATION
India has todeter/dissuade China from embarking
on any military misadventure against our country.
India must try to dissuade China through diplomatic
and economic means. However, to deter China, India
does not have the required conventional military
power. While improving our conventional military
strength, India must therefore, look for other
innovativeoptions:
 Enhance & Exploit Offensive Cyber Capability:
There is considerable penetration of computers in
China’s civil and military domains. This makes it
vulnerable to cyber-attacks. India has not harnessed
and exploited its immensepotential incyberfield with
missionary zeal for cyber warfare which is a cost
effective option. Cyber should be given required
autonomy like the Indian Space Research
Organization (ISRO) has been and results are bound

to be there. Well thought out and massive cyber-
attacks can bring any nation to its knees by paralyzing

its functioning and has therefore the capability to act
asdeterrent.
 Use of Low Yield Nuclear Weapons: Regrettably,
there seems to be no role for nuclear weapons in the
Indian military strategy – the two are in separate
compartments. India’s nuclear doctrine has been
dominated by diplomats and even policemen and the
military has been kept out of the nuclear loop. Also it
has been Pakistan-centric. India being weaker

conventional military must use comprehensive and
synergized military power, incorporating assets in all
domains, including nuclear, tosafeguard its territorial
integrity. Use of small yield nuclear device, in own
territory in sparsely populated areas againstintruding
PLA Forces along the Indo-Tibet Border will certainly
actasdeterrent. Chinacannotafford to loseacoupleof
Regiments worth to a nuclear or any other mass
destruction weapon. India’s No First Use Nuclear
Doctrine needs to be tweaked accordingly. Chinese
academicians have already given hints of China
resorting to use of nuclear weapons in case in case
some red lines are crossed and socan India! In facttwo
key functionaries in the Indian cabinet have already
stated that all means will be considered for India’s
defence.
FIGHTING THE TACTICALBATTLE BYINDIA
Chinese are likely use the concept of land-air
warfare, with very close cooperation and coordination
betweentheirArmyand Air Force. PLAwill ensure 3 to
4:1 superiority in numbers at the places they are going
to launch their offensives. A deception plan in
operations and information warfare will be important
partoftheoverall strategy. Theattackplanwill include
use of overwhelming fire power (shock and awe) by
artillery, rockets, armed helicopters, air, including
UAVs. The attacks will be multidirectional and not
only restricted to the front line but in depth areas as
well. Outflanking moves, even through neutral
countries like Nepal and Bhutan and vertical
envelopment will form important part of the battle
plan.
The Vietnamese faced technologically superior
America and in fact defeated them! They also gave
bloody nose to PLA during the Sino-Vietnam war of
1979. We need to study these wars and draw

appropriate lessons. Low-cost and may not be so-
called modern options have to be explored by the

IndianArmy as far as battling PLAalong the Northern
Borders is concerned. Indian military, particularly the
Army has to do innovative thinking to minimize the
effect of great technological and numerical gap. We
should not become complacent by conducting
peacetime exercises without building in realistic
disruption and attrition expected in a war situation
and based on our response in border skirmishes like
theoneatDoklamin2017.
OTHER STEPS THE INDIAN ARMY AND AIR
FORCE CAN TAKE AGAINSTPLA
Be prepared for deep forays by the PLA using
outflanking moves and vertical envelopment, along

with multidirectional attacksonthe forward defenses.
Determination to stand fast and defend prepared
positions to the last man last round. No question of
any withdrawal. A weaker boxer closes with the
stronger one and does not give him room to flex his
arms. Take a cue from this for tactical battles. Indian
Army is good at defensive battles, as it has been
deployed on defensive tasks since Independence
(1947)! Exploitthisexperienceand capability.
However, we need to study the quantum of TNT
PLA can fire on Indian defenses and upgrade our
bunkers and defence works. Also dig tunnels to
withstand enemy shelling, rocket and air attacks. Be
mentally prepared to be surrounded and cut off. DO
NOT PANIC! Have enough stocks of ammunition,
food, water etc. in the defenses, including medical
facilities.
GUERRILLAWARFARE
IndianArmymustrealizethatwearedefending our
sacred land. We will be fighting in our own territory
and area where Indian Armed Forces have been
deployed for 60-70 years. We should know every inch
of the ground! This advantage is, however, frittered
away by frequent turnover of units. The fight against
PLA’s aggression has to become a people’s war.
Guerrilla warfare by local population equipped,
trained and led by Special Forces should become
importantpartof overall warfightagainstPLA.
The advantages of involvement of local citizens in
the fighting are obvious. Guerrilla warfare can also be
extended across in to Tibet to harass adversary’s lines
of communications, command and control
infrastructure and logistics installations. Close and
logistics support by the IAF will form important part
of guerrillawarfare.
USE OF LIGHT TANKS/INFANTRY COMBAT
VEHICLES
Use of light tanks/Infantry Combat Vehicles for
battles astride mountain roads needs serious
consideration. These were used in the Korean and
Vietnam Wars and by the Indian Army in Zojila in
1948.
HOW TO MEET THE CYBER AND ELECTRONIC
THREATS?
For countering the Cyber threat, various IT firms,
academia and government assets as also the
capabilities with the military need to be synergized
and utilized. In fact, every citizen has to be made
aware and follow national guidelines. Students in
collegesand evenschoolsneed tobeeducated.

Chinese electronic equipment which is likely to
have bugs inserted, must not be used for defence and
critical civil infrastructure. Have strict emission
policy, not only during war but in peace as well. The
adversaries are engaged in ELINT (Electronic
Intelligence) to map our radars, communication and
ISR systems during peace. Human discipline by users
and providers must for ensuring security of electronic
and computerbased systems. Veryessential todepend
more on fiber optics and even old underground and
field cables, ratherthanradio.
In exercises, get commanders and troops used to
break in communications for extended periods. Have
enough redundancy in communication networks by
having alternate to alternates. Ensure diversity while
planning networks of geographic, network
engineering and media for protection against enemy
electronic and cyber-attacks. Do not over consolidate
networks and rather have more networks instead; due
to looming cyber and electronic threat. Security and
safety of satellites against EW, cyber and kinetic
attacks cannot be over emphasized. ISRO has to be
goaded by the military to ensure this. Safety and
security of isolated communication detachments
cannotbeoveremphasized.
Use of terminology HQ be done away with in field
formations as it connotes peace time environment.
Introduce the concept of alternate command posts in
Field Formations, manned by Deputy Formation
Commanders. These should have required
communications infrastructure and staff to take over
the command and control immediately the
Primary/Main Command Postis rendered ineffective,
due to enemy cyber/EW/ physical action. Finally, the
Chinese Signals are still maintaining number of
pigeon units. Let us look at it and Flag Signaling also,

to be used in extreme cases. Non-electronic and non-
cyber systems may find a use and a Saragarhi may be

repeated along Indo-TibetBorder. Oneneverknows.
DEPLOYING LOCAL SOLDIERS IN HIGH
ALTITUDE AREAS
The advantages of local troops deployed in high
altitude operational areas are apparent i.e. hardly any
acclimatization needed, genetic ability to operate and
live at high altitudes, knowledge of local area and
language and ability to live off the land. About 1/3 of
fighting and supporting arms troops deployed along
theNorthernBordershould compriseof local soldiers.
This can be done by having Scouts or TA Units. Some
effort has been made in this direction by having
Ladakh and Himachal Scouts. This needs to be
extended to the whole Indo-Tibet Border and part of

BorderwithPakistaninLadakh.
CONTINUITY IN TENURES FOR GREATER
EFFICIENCY
 A good percentage of the Indian Army is constantly
on the move. Units moving from north to south, east
to west and vice versa. Units deployed in deserts are
straight moved to high mountains and other way
round. Units with armoured/mechanized formations
find themselves deployed along the LOC/LAC on
pickets.
 Fighting efficiency is certainly not a criteria used by
Staff Duties Directorate while preparing roster for
annual changeover of units!! There is a need for
stability and continuity in area deployed and
operational role. Otherwise up to 1/4 of troops
deployed in a war situation will be rather new and not
conversant with the area to have edge over the
invaders!!
 In 1962, units from plains were suddenly moved to
Arunachal to face the Chinese onslaught and they
became almost cannon fodder! Indian officer and
Jawan are very versatile but efficiency and fighting
potential of units can be improved significantly, if
greatercontinuity isprovided.
CYBER AND ELECTRONICTHREATTO THE IAF
Indian Army and Indian Air Force should realize
that their Intelligence Surveillance & Reconnaissance
(ISR) system as also C4I (command, control,
communication and computer and intelligence)
systems will be significantly degraded right at the
start, by PLA. IAF should assess electronic warfare
and cyber threat to its air operations control and
direction system, realistically. Also electronic and
cyber threat to its aircraft in the light of a Sukhoi
suddenly vanishing during a routine flight in
Arunachal, a few years back. Also, PLA has been
targeting flights by USAF over the China Sea for a
numberof yearsnow, including by laser!
SYNERGYBETWEEN THE ARMYAND AIR FORCE
The required synergy between Indian Army and
Air Force is woefully lacking, in spite of public
statements to the contrary by the top brass. The so
called TheaterCommandsarea long wayoff and inany
case IAF lacks required number of fighter aircraft to
apportion to various theaters. The dual threat from
Chinaand Pakistanwill dividetheairpowerfurther.
For decades, the top brass of the Army and Air
Force have failed to understand and appreciate the
capabilities, limitationsasalsoneedsof eachother. Air
Power has tremendous potential in land air warfare.

Its flexibility to switch from one area to another and
attack targets deep inside enemy territory, precision
attacks and resultant ‘shock and awe’ are, so vital in
moderncombat.
At the same time, the fighting for real estate that
the Army gets involved in, is crucial for the nation.
This needs to be understood and appreciated by the

topArmy and Air Force brass. Single pointoperational
authority is amusttooptimizeoperations by theArmy
and Air Force. Otherwise they will be fighting their
own wars, as in the past. Feasibility and desirability of
use of expensive aircraft for close air support of troops
engaged in battleson the land needs to be settled once
forall.

Veteran Lt Gen Harbhajan Singh, PVSM, is the former Signal Officer-in-Chief. He is a product of the first course of the Joint Services
Wing, the precursor to the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehra Dun and the NDA(National Defence Academy), Pune. He has held
operational appointments at brigade, corps, command and Army Headquarter during his long service.

There are no transgressions in Galwan Valley, say govt officials, but Finger area of Pangong Lake is a trouble spot and could take longer to resolve.

Government sources said work on the concrete bridge, which is set to replace an existing wooden bridge, is going on, and India has made it clear to the Chinese that it will carry on with border infrastructure development.

The Print had earlier reported that China’s main concern in the Galwan Valley was this bridge.

“The work on the bridge, which is about 7 to 7.5 kilometres from the LAC, had started much earlier. However, around 10 May, the Chinese came to know of the construction and objected to it. However, the work on the bridge continues. The ongoing issues have only made us work faster on this bridge,” a senior official in the security and defence establishment said on the condition of anonymity.

The bridge is part of a network of feeder roads that India is building connecting the strategically important Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi road, inaugurated by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh last year.

“The Chinese have no objection to the Shyok-DBO road, and that road is about 9-10 km from the LAC. The objection was to this bridge that we were constructing. We have made it clear that the construction is happening well within Indian territory and it will go on,” said the official.

Sources stressed that while there is troop build-up on both sides of the LAC, the focus is on resolving the issue through talks.

Also read: LAC standoff: India looks at ‘early resolution’, while China says agreement reached

China doubtful of India’s moves in Galwan Valley

Government sources said one of the reasons why China objected to the bridge could be that it is doubtful of India’s intent, after it bifurcated the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories, one of which is Ladakh, and subsequently started raising its voice about Aksai Chin.

Sources said these suspicions were despite External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s visit to Beijing last August to reassure China that India was not raising any additional territorial claim on contested areas in the region, as reported by Hindustan Times on 3 June.

China not only supported Pakistan on the Kashmir issue in last year’s closed-door informal session of the UN Security Council, but also raked up the status of Aksai Chin, as reported by The Economic Times: “Chinese Permanent Representative in the UN claimed that the government’s decision to abrogate Article 370 challenged China’s sovereign interests and violated bilateral agreements on maintaining peace and stability in the border area.”

Sources said China has been told that infrastructure development activities on their own sides are the sole domain of individual countries, and that India had never objected to Chinese construction activities on their side.

They added that China is uncomfortable with the infrastructure development, which started about two decades ago but has gathered steam in recent years.

“China feels that the tactical advantage it has at the LAC with regard to swift deployment and movement will be eroded,” a source said.

Also read: China’s military adventurism is meant to distract from origins of Covid: Tibetan President

The situation in Galwan

The government sources ruled out any presence of Chinese troops on the Indian side of the Galwan Valley. The LAC and the Chinese Claim Line are the same in this area.

“The Chinese at no place have crossed their claim line, which at places differs from our claim line. In Galwan, both claim lines are similar,” a source said.

The Indian and Chinese armies have been holding meetings at Patrol Point 14, at the mouth of the Galwan Valley. “This is the meeting point area in the Galwan for talks,” a source said, admitting that both sides have built up troops and equipment, after the first move by the Chinese. ThePrint was the first to report that Indian forces executed “mirror deployment” along the LAC.

Situation in Hot Spring area

Sources admitted that the Chinese have crossed the Indian claim line in the larger Hot Spring area by about 3 km, as reported by ThePrint.

The transgressions have taken place near Patrol Point 15 and Patrol Point 17, also known as the Gogra post.

A limited number of India and Chinese soldiers are facing off at these locations. However, they are backed by a larger number of troops and equipment behind them.

Small disengagement steps have been taken by both sides in Galwan and the Hot Spring area as part of confidence building measures, following the talks between 14 Corps Commander Lt Gen. Harinder Singh and his Chinese counterpart Saturday. However, this cannot be described as de-escalation.

Also read: PM Modi’s silence on LAC stand-off is benefiting China. India must change its script

Pangong Lake is the trouble spot

Government sources said talks on the Finger area of the Pangong Lake could take longer, as China has refused to budge from this area so far.

The Chinese have come down to ‘Finger 4’ of the northern bank of the lake to stop the Indian soldiers from patrolling until ‘Finger 8’, which is the Indian claim line.

Over the last few years, sources said that whenever Indians used to carry out their long range patrol from ‘Finger 2’, Chinese troops used to come down from their Srijap post and try and prevent Indians from moving beyond ‘Finger 5’.

However, just before the winter settled in last year, the Indians managed to reach ‘Finger 8’ by using an alternate track through the heights.

“This caught the Chinese by surprise and hence they have come down to ‘Finger 4’ (Chinese claim line) and also the heights there to prevent Indian patrols from going forward. The talks on this issue may take a little longer,” the government official cited at the beginning of this report said.

Movement of mechanised columns and artillery

Sources said while forward positioning of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is a concern, the movement of artillery and mechanised columns should not be seen as too alarming.

“Any kind of mobilisation will come with their own attachment and detachment. People who don’t understand this tend to be too alarmist,” the official quoted above said.

India too has deployed additional troop strength in Ladakh, including elements of artillery and other equipment.

“There are a number of support systems that are needed when you move a large number of soldiers. There would be vehicles to transport them, tents to make them stay and so on,” a source explained.

“Also, to stay that Chinese artillery guns have been deployed at LAC is being naïve, because these guns come with stand-off ranges. They can target Indian positions from well within their territory, just like Indians guns can do.”

Also read: India has a bigger worry than LAC. China now expanding military footprint in Indian Ocean

NEW DELHI

Army delegations from India and China, led by major general-ranked officers, on Friday held discussions in eastern Ladakh again to resolve the standoff between border troops as defence minister Rajnath Singh met the military brass here and reviewed the situation along the disputed Line of Actual Control (LAC), two officers said on condition of anonymity.

This was the fifth meeting between the two major generals to break the stalemate that began with a violent confrontation between rival patrols near Pangong Tso on the night of May 5-6.

The two officers last met at Patrolling Point 14 near the Galwan area on Wednesday as part of continuing efforts to resolve the confrontation that eased slightly with limited disengagement of forces at some LAC hotspots earlier this week.

Friday’s meeting between major general Abhijit Bapat, commander of the Karu-based HQs 3 Infantry Division, and his Chinese counterpart went on for nearly five hours, said one of the officers cited above.

In Delhi, the defence minister was briefed on the ongoing border scrap and the status of the military-level dialogue to resolve it at a meeting with chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat and the service chiefs, said the second officer cited above.

Earlier this week, the two sides began what Indian officials described as a “limited military disengagement” at three hotspots along the LAC – Galwan Valley, Patrolling Point 15 and Hot Springs.

The limited disengagement happened after a meeting between Lieutenant General Harinder Singh, commander of Leh-based 14 Corps, and Major General Liu Lin, commander of the People’s Liberation Army, in the South Xinjiang region last Saturday.

The focus is now on resolving the situation on the northern bank of Pangong Tso, which has been at the centre of the ongoing border scrap and where troops are still locked in a face-off.

Last month’s violent confrontations between Indian and Chinese soldiers in eastern Ladakh and north Sikkim triggered a military build-up on both sides of the LAC that stretched from Ladakh to Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, as reported by Hindustan Times on Friday.

The Chinese build-up began immediately after clashes between border troops in Ladakh and Sikkim on May 5-6 and May 9, and predated the June 6 meeting between Lieutenant General Singh and his Chinese counterpart at Moldo on the Chinese side of the LAC.

India and China are continuing diplomatic and military engagements for an “early resolution” of the stand-off between border troops, the external affairs ministry said on Thursday. More military talks are planned in the coming days to ease border tensions.

Describing China as an “authoritarian country” without the “self-corrective part” of the national DNA seen in India and the US, former US diplomat Nicholas Burns said the leadership in Beijing is “fearful”.