Leh: Both Indian and Chinese troops have retreated two kilometres each along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Galwan Valley. This was informed by sources Monday. A couple of weeks back 20 Indian and unknown number of Chinese soldiers was killed in a violent face-off last month.
Top official sources told said that both sides retreated two kilometres simultaneously Sunday. This happened after several rounds of talks which had begun after the clash June 15. The disengagement between Indian and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) happened as per the agreed terms in the Corps Commander’s meeting.
With the retreat from both sides, a four kilometre no-man zone has been created. “Four kilometres in the highly mountainous terrain like Galwan valley, deprives both sides to see each other’s installations and reinforcements,” sources said.
The two sides have also agreed, sources said, not to do any aerial surveillance of the retreated area. This will be followed to rebuild the trust which was badly damaged due to the June 15 bloodbath. “As a result, neither side would really know what the other side is doing,” a military source said.
Indian Navy’s P-8I aircraft generally used for maritime patrol and reconnaissance had been pressed into service in Ladakh for high altitude surveillance. The P-8Is carried out similar surveillance operations during the 2017 India-China standoff in Doklam in Sikkim. However, sources said PLA has removed tents and structures at PP14.
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The retreat Sunday, sources said, is limited to these areas and not other contentious points along the LAC. Around 30,000 troops of Indian Army are in an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation with Chinese troops along the LAC in Ladakh, following the additional deployment of three brigades since the violent face-off last month.
Highly placed sources said that in normal times six brigades, that is two divisions are maintained along the LAC in Ladakh. However, after the June 15 violent clash the Army called for three additional brigades (each brigade constitutes around 3,000 troops and support elements).
Around 10,000 troops for the three additional brigades were brought from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, sources said. In all, sources said, there are three Army divisions along the LAC under the XIV Corps Command, as of today.
Sources said some para special forces which played a key role in the 2017 surgical strikes against Pakistan, have also been sent to Ladakh. The Indian para-troopers come from over a dozen special force regiments who are trained in high-risk operations in extremely difficult terrain. Similarly, five battalions of Ladakh scouts, an infantry regiment of the Army, is operational for support in the mountain warfare.
Since the violent clash in the Galwan valley, the Indian Army reinforcements have been backed by its M-777 ultra-light howitzers bought from the US, sources said. The American howitzers, sling-loaded to helicopters, are known for their precision artillery fire up to a range of 24-30 kms in mountainous regions.