Indian constructions close to Aksai Chin began 12 yrs ago
Arun Joshi
Tribune News Service
Jammu, May 29
India has been constructing strategically crucial roads and repairing the airstrips close to Aksai Chin since 2008 and the aggressive objection to these constructions now is to redefine the boundaries as per its own misplaced perceptions.
For easy access to troops
The construction of the roads cutting mountains and negotiating sand dunes was to enable the troops to have an easy access to the front lines. It was also to deny China to take advantage of Indian troops’ absence in the strategically important areas in Ladakh.
Two roads leading to Fukche and Daulat Beg Olde — the two airfields which were activated in April 2008, then after a gap of 41 years in the eastern and western parts of Ladakh.
The construction of the roads cutting the mountains and negotiating the sand dunes was to enable the troops to have an easy access to the front lines. It was also to deny China to take advantage of Indian troops’ absence in the strategically important areas in Ladakh.
“These are strategically important areas for the Indian Army for defence purposes,” sources in the Army told The Tribune.
“There can be no compromises on strategic assets,” the sources said.
The roads were being constructed from the eastern and western flanks of the Aksai Chin area.
India had lost Aksai Chin because of its almost negligible presence in the area. The presence is required to strengthen the Indian defences strategically and enhance the visibility there.
The roads are important for there cannot be an all-time dependence on air presence because of vagaries of weather. In 2008, AN-32 and medium-sized IL-76 aircraft had landed and later these were upgraded for landing of bigger planes as well.
An Indian Air Force (IAF) fixed-wing aircraft (AN-32) landed at Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO) in the Ladakh region close to the Chinese border on May 31, 2008, and Fukche was activated in October 2007.
The Advanced Landing Ground, where the aircraft landed at DBO, is located at the height of 16,200 feet (4,960) metres near the strategic Karakoram pass and close to the Line of Actual Control with China in the Aksai Chin area.
Daulat Beg Oldie is an important Army forward area post which links the ancient silk route to China. This base was built during the Indo-China conflict in 1962. Packet aircraft of the IAF operated from DBO between 1962 and 1965. In 1996, an earthquake caused some loosening of the surface soil making the base unfit for further fixed-wing aircraft operations. But since 2008, things started changing and that’s what has made China to go in for area denial strategy by its aggressive and weaponised strategy.
