China’s patrolling deviations disturb border: MEA on ITBP DG's face-offs remark

New Delhi: Following confirmation by ITBP of the continuing India-China military stand-off on the Arunachal Pradesh border, India once again cautioned China that maintaining peace and tranquillity in the border areas was essential for the overall development of bilateral ties, echoing PM Narendra Modi’s message to Chinese President Xi Jinping during their meeting last month.The ministry of external affairs (MEA) on Friday did not go into the specifics of the latest face-off, choosing to refer the issue to the defence ministry, but said Chinese divergence from established patrolling patterns created disturbances at the border from time to time.“As we have noted in the past, the situation in India-China border areas gets disturbed from time to time when Chinese forces diverge from established patrolling patterns,” ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, adding that the two sides had also agreed to discuss ways to improve understanding of the Line of Actual Control in appropriate areas for better border management.

Stronger drones must to counter PLA: ITBP

The official said both sides continued to use existing diplomatic and military mechanisms to resolve outstanding issues and avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation along the Line of Actual Control.ITBP DG Shatrujeet Kapur had on Thursday publicly said that Indian and Chinese troops had lately been locked in face-offs at select points along the LAC in Arunachal Pradesh, which “are still continuing”. He, however, added that the ‘Shaurya’ commandos of his force, deployed along the LAC, had done an “excellent job” in dealing with the face-offs.

The ITBP chief said India was focusing on building its drone and anti-drone capabilities as “conventional” military resources and infrastructure were not enough to take on the People’s Liberation Army which had undergone a massive capacity upgrade and modernisation, making China a “very strong adversary”.“Drones can pose a challenge as well as present an advantage,” Kapur said, citing the example of Ukraine and Iran which, despite being small nations and with much smaller or no conventional armed forces, had taken on superpowers like Russia and the US respectively.DG Shatrujeet Kapur said ITBP had included drone platoons for all its border units, with 70% of the Rs 400 crore allocated by MHA for modernisation of the force earmarked for upgrading drone warfare capabilities. The force is raising more ‘Shaurya’ commando platoons trained in mountain warfare, new-generation weapons and unarmed combat.Kapur said ITBP must redefine itself as a high-altitude fighting force, distinct from the Army or any other central paramilitary force.Reports of border friction coincide with the ongoing efforts to normalise Sino-India ties that have seen considerable progress since Modi’s meeting with Xi in Russia’s Kazan in 2024.In the meeting last month, Modi underlined the need for both sides to observe existing agreements and understandings on border-related issues. The two leaders also expressed commitment to a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable resolution of the boundary question.

Cong slams govt over face-offs

Citing ITBP DG Shatrujeet Kapur’s remarks about continuing skirmishes with China, Congress Friday asked PM Modi whether the pre-May 2020 status quo ante had been restored in Ladakh and if India could patrol up to border points such as Shera-5 in Arunachal Pradesh.

Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said the govt should send an all-party delegation, including the opposition, to Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh to establish whether China had encroached on Indian territory.“PM gave China a clean chit in 2020. In 2026, the country deserves a clean account of what is happening on its borders. Enough of clean chits to China — it is time for govt to come clean before India.”Khera termed DG Shatrujeet Kapur’s remarks serious and claimed they showed that China’s belligerence continued despite the govt “kowtowing” to Beijing. He cited continuing skirmishes, reports of encroachment, including by BJP netas, and a trade deficit with China that had ballooned to $113 billion.Congress questioned outcomes of repeated meetings between Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping, asking why incursions and attempts to alter the LAC continued.