China building bridge on occupied land in Ladakh: Govt

Ground Report | New Delhi: China building bridge in Ladakh; China is building a bridge in the illegally occupied area on Pangong Lake in eastern Ladakh. The Central Government told this to the Parliament on Friday.

Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan, while giving a written reply in Parliament, said, "A bridge is being built on the Pangong Lake from the Chinese side, of which the Government of India has taken cognizance." This bridge is being constructed in those areas which have been under illegal occupation of China since 1962.

"The Government of India has never accepted this illegal occupation. The government has made it clear on several occasions that the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are an integral part of India and we expect other countries to respect India's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The statement said that India is continuing dialogue with China at the diplomatic and military level to maintain peace along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.

Sarkar said, "These talks of ours have always been focused on three points and will continue to do so. These three points are: 1- Both sides have to strictly follow and respect the LAC. 2- Both sides will maintain the status quo; 3- Any settlement will be with the full consent of both parties.

A question was asked in the Parliament about the status of territories and the current situation on the Sino-Indian border. Responding to this, Minister of State for External Affairs V. Murali Dharan said that India has taken stern notice of the new bridge being built by China.

"The bridge is being built in areas that have been under illegal Chinese occupation since 1962," he said. The Indian government has never acknowledged this illegal occupation. "

Asked if India had raised the issue with China or talked to it, the Indian minister said, "The government has made it clear many times that the centrally administered Jammu and Kashmir and The Ladakh region is an integral part of India. We hope that other countries will respect India's sovereignty and its territorial integrity. "

The reply also said that "the government has also taken cognizance of the fact that parts of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh have been renamed by China, but this futile attempt will not change the fact that Arunachal Pradesh belongs to India." is an integral part and always will be''

China's eight-metre-wide bridge is located just south of a Chinese army field on the northern bank of Pangong, where Chinese army field hospitals and residences were seen during a standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in 2020.

There has been a standoff between India and China in this area since the violent encounter between the Indian Army and the Chinese Army in the Galwan Valley in the year 2020. 20 Indian soldiers were killed in the violent clash in Galwan. Since then, more than 50,000 soldiers from both sides have been deployed in eastern Ladakh.

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