China provokes India again: Indian graziers stopped by Chinese troops near LAC in eastern Ladakh

Indian graziers were reportedly stopped by Chinese troops from moving ahead near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Demchok region of eastern Ladakh over a week ago, news agency PTI reported. The incident is understood to have taken place on August 21.

Indian graziers were on the Indian side of the LAC but the Chinese troops still objected to their presence in the area and claimed that part to be on their side, PTI quoted people familiar with the matter. The matter didn't escalate further otherwise. In a worst case scenario, it could have led to another confrontation or scuffle between the Indian and Chinese troops.

To keep things in control, the Indian military commanders held talks with their Chinese counterparts on the incident to resolve the issue, news agency ANI reported. Notably, the incident took place near the area, which has remained the friction point between two nuclear-powered nations since 2020.


"Such incidents happen in those areas because of differing perceptions about the LAC by both sides," said one of the people cited by PTI, adding the incident figured in subsequent talks between area commanders of the two armies.

India-China talks
India has been consistently maintaining its stand that peace and tranquillity along the LAC is key for the overall development of Sino-India bilateral ties. The Indian and Chinese militaries have held 16 rounds of talks to resolve the eastern Ladakh border standoff that erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake areas.

Heavy deployment
During the Galwan valley face-off between India-China in 2020, twenty Indian soldiers including the commanding officer of an infantry battalion were killed.It was the deadliest clash between two nations in four decades, which was followed by massive deployment of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry in the largely peaceful area. Though talks have been happening on a regular basis, there hasn't been any significant development in terms of reducing the tension. Last year saw some disengagement of soldiers from Galwan Valley, Pangong Tso and Gogra-Hot Springs area, but reportedly the two sides still have more than 60,000 troops and latest weapons deployed in the Ladakh region.

India's firm stand
In a clear message to China, Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said a few days ago that the state of the border would also determine the state of the India-China relationship. "For ties to return to a positive trajectory and remain sustainable, they must be based on the three mutuals: mutual sensitivity, mutual respect and mutual interest. Their current status is, of course, well known to all of you. I can only reiterate that the state of the border will determine the state of the relationship," he said.