NEW DELHI: India and China troops will start co-ordinated patrolling at Demchok and Depsang Plains by the month-end. These Plains were the last two remaining flash points in Ladakh on which an agreement was reached between the two countries earlier this week.
The two sides started the process of dismantling semi-permanent structures and tents at these two areas on Wednesday, army sources said. The target is to dismantle all the structures and tents and move back the troops by October 28-29.
“All the structures and troops will be re-located to pre-April 2020 status. Indian troops will be able to patrol at these places which they were doing pre-April 2020,” sources said and added that Indian soldiers will carry weapons while patrolling in these two areas.
The agreement between India and China reached on Monday is only for Demchok and Depsang Plains, where Chinese troops were blocking Indian patrols from going up to India’s perceived line. There is no change in the buffer zones which were created in Pangong Tso, Galwan and Gogra-Hotsprings in Ladakh as per earlier agreements reached to end stand-off at these places. Patrolling is not allowed in the buffer zones in these areas by either Indian or Chinese soldiers.
“The agreement was only for Demchok and Depsang Plains. Talks are going for all other areas,” said sources.
The agreement framework was first agreed upon at the diplomatic level and then military-level talks took place, the army sources said, adding the nitty-gritty of agreement was worked in Corps Commander-level talks.
“The final agreement was signed by the Corps Commanders on Monday taking the ground situation into consideration,” said sources. The patrols will be co-ordinated by both sides so that there are no face-offs. “It is hoped that these moves will build trust between the two countries,” said sources.
The latest agreement in Depsang and Demchok brings to an end the over four-and-a-half-year-old stand-off between India and China in Ladakh.
After disengagement, the next move will be de-escalation where the huge number of troops brought to the front-line will be de-inducted back to rear positions. On October 23, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China President Xi Jinping endorsed the agreement on patrolling and disengagement along the LAC in eastern Ladakh during their bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Brics Summit in Kazan in Russia.
