'Satellite images show China has built villages, road near border in Arunachal'

New Delhi, Dec 13

Satellite images shows that China has built villages on their side of the India-China border abutting Arunachal Pradesh's Tawang, and the PLA army has also constructed a road on that side, Indian Army sources said on Tuesday, a day after a clash between troops of both sides last week became public.

On the clash, sources said that as many as 300 Chinese troops had arrived near the LAC on December 9 to gain control over the peak of a 17,000-feet-high mountain under a well-planned conspiracy, but the Indian troops foiled their attempt, the source said.

Meanwhile, China's first statement on the clash has come, with its Foreign Ministry said that the situation on its border with India is "stable".

When India raised the issue of clash between Indian and Chinese soldiers on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) near Tawang, China maintained that the situation on the border is stable.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said: "As far as we understand, the situation on the China-India border is overall stable. Continuous talks are going on, on the border issue through diplomatic and military channels."

Although, China has maintained that the situation on its border with India is stable but according to sources, the Chinese soldiers had come with barbed sticks near the LAC on December 9.

India has taken a tough stand on the clash between Indian and Chinese soldiers. A meeting with the chiefs of all three armed forces, the CDS, and the NSA was also called by the Defence Minister.

The clash between Indian and Chinese troops on December 9 took place at the 17,000 feet at Yangtse, some 35 km north-east of Tawang in western Arunachal Pradesh.

A source informed that there have been injuries to both Indian and Chinese soldiers and six of the injured Indian soldiers had been admitted to the military hospital at Guwahati, but here is no reports of any serious injury or death.

China has been repeatedly trying to take control of the 17,000-feet-high peak but Indian Army sources said that India has a firm control of the peak, which provides a commanding view on both sides of the border.

After the tension erupted between India and the Chinese PLA Army in Arunachal Pradesh, now Indian Air Force aircraft are patrolling the skies of Arunachal to prevent the Chinese Army from violating the LAC again.

According to Air Force sources, this patrolling is being done to prevent any possible airspace violations by the Chinese Air Force.