India-China border tension: After the Galwan Valley incident in 2020, two undisclosed incidents of clashes between Indian and Chinese troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) have recently surfaced. The gallantry awards conferred on Indian Army personnel, revealed during an investiture ceremony by the Army's Western Command last week, shed light on these confrontations. The citations outlined how Indian troops robustly countered the aggressive actions of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers along the LAC.
The Army's Western Command, headquartered in Chandimandir, initially shared a video of the January 13 ceremony, featuring details about the gallantry award citations, on its YouTube channel. However, the video was taken down on Monday, January 15.
No comments from the Army so far
The skirmishes mentioned in the citations occurred between September 2021 and November 2022. However, the Army has not provided an immediate comment on the matter. In the aftermath of the clashes in the Galwan Valley in June 2020, the Indian Army has maintained a heightened state of combat readiness along the 3,488 km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Over the past three-and-a-half years since the onset of the eastern Ladakh border dispute in May 2020, there have been numerous incidents of confrontations between Indian and Chinese troops along the LAC. The Chinese troops also made an attempt to transgress in the Tawang sector of the LAC.
China's attempt to breach LAC in 2022
On December 9, 2022, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops made an attempt to breach the Line of Actual Control in the Yangtse area of the Tawang Sector, unilaterally altering the status quo, as revealed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in Parliament four days after the incident. He stated that the Indian troops contested the Chinese endeavour with firm resolve.
According to news agency PTI sources, several Indian Army personnel, who played a crucial role in responding resolutely to the attempted Chinese transgression, were honoured with gallantry awards during the investiture ceremony.
"The ensuing face-off led to a physical scuffle in which the Indian Army bravely prevented the PLA from transgressing into our territory and compelled them to return to their posts," Singh said on December 13 that year. The clash led to injuries to a few personnel on both sides, he added.
India-China border tensions
In response to a skirmish in June 2020 between PRC and Indian patrols in Galwan Valley, the most violent clash between the two countries in 45 years, the Western Theater Command implemented a large-scale mobilisation and deployment of People's Liberation Army (PLA) forces along the LAC, according to reports.
The Galwan Valley clashes on June 15, 2020, significantly strained the bilateral ties. The two countries have previously fought over the border in 1962 and 1967. According to reports, there have been over 50 rounds of talks between the two countries related to these border issues since 1980s. Notably, India has maintained that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas.
(With PTI inputs)
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