Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 31

India, it seems, is militarily preparing for a “hot summer” along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) — the de facto 3,448-km boundary with China running all along the Himalayan ridge line.Post the 73-day (June 16 to August 28, 2017) Doklam stand-off, India has increased patrolling along the far-eastern part of Arunachal Pradesh. The remote mountainous terrain at Kibithu, Walong and the Lohit valley are in greater focus. Surveillance is not possible through UAVs due to dense tree foliage. Hence, patrolling has to be on foot in the valleys of Lohit, lower  Subhansiri, upper Subhansiri, Siang,  Dibang,  Delai and Dau.These are very narrow valleys in which the invader will have a military disadvantage, said a senior military officer.Walong, Kibithu and Lohit were the locations of pitched India-China battles in 1962, but things have changed. India has militarily tailored its response to stall any incursion.A rather candidly written ‘History of the conflict with China’ produced 30 years after the war by the Historical Division of the Ministry of Defence describes the battle of Walong: “A defensive battle against heavy odds, the troops fought bravely, but being out-numbered and out-weaponed in automatics and ammunition, suffered heavily.” But it was no walkover. “Indian troops offered stiff resistance, but they had to vacate their positions,” says the MoD’s book.After that, India has had a fully functional airstrip at Walong and a division (some 20,000 troops) located in the eastern-most corner of India. All key bases have road connectivity, a far cry from 1962 when a 14-day Tezu-Walong trek was the only option.India’s move has come after Beijing’s troops have taken to intensive patrolling in areas that are disputed all along the LAC and have been building military infrastructure. US confirms military build-up on both sides

• On January 25,  US-based think tank Stratfor released a report ‘Preparing for a rematch at the top of the world’. It said India and China have continued with a build-up of military resources on either side
• It released satellite images of airbases of both countries and said “the imagery confirms that both China and India are pursuing a wide-ranging strategic build-up that has only accelerated in the wake of the August agreement (to dis-engage)”