Why Depsang Plains on the LAC are critical to India’s strategic interest

On October 4, the Indian Army conducted its first patrol since the spring of 2020 in the Depsang Plains that straddle the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in north-eastern Ladakh. On horseback, a group of around 15 soldiers went up to patrol point (PP) 10, one of the five such points where the Indian Army used to patrol till the situation began escalating in this particular sector in late 2021, and the face-offs became frequent.

The modalities of carrying out patrols to the other points — PP-11, PP-11A, PP-12, and PP-13 — are “being finalised” by both sides. Following the agreement last month to disengage at Depsang and Demchok, the two remaining friction points amongst the seven in that sector. Patrols had resumed in Demchok last week.

The resumption of patrols comes even as the Army prepares for its fifth consecutive winter of heavy deployment in areas and at heights that generally did not happen before 2020. The onset of winters, with heavy snow and temperatures dipping 30°C below zero throws up its own challenges on operations in the rugged terrain and would also have a bearing on the patrolling schedule and accessibility to some areas.

Laying close to the Siachen Glacier and Karakoram Pass, Depsang Plains are critical to India’s strategic interests. Patrolling in these areas, as with other sectors along the LAC, had been severely restricted since the 2020 escalation, with heavy deployment of forces on either side.

Laying at an average altitude of 17,400 ft, Depsang means “open, elevated plain” in Tibetan dialect. Roughly covering 800 sq m, the western part of the plains is controlled by India, while the eastern part falls in Aksai Chin, occupied by China. The east-west axis is nearly 40-km-long and the north-south axis about 20-km-broad.

Given their geography, these vast, stony flatlands, bereft of vegetation, are among the few odd places suitable for the employment of armoured vehicles in the otherwise largely mountainous terrain of Ladakh. Several rivers, including the Chip Chap, Shyok and Karakash, along with numerous rivulets flow in and around the plains. Over the past decade the Border Roads Organisation has also built-up significant infrastructure in that area. The nearest town is Murgo, 45 km to the south.

The 255-km strategic all-weather Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO) road that provides access to the DBO airstrip — the world’s highest at an elevation of 16,700 ft, and thereon to the Karakoram Pass — lies through the Depsang Plains and in close proximity to the LAC. Not too far to the east is China’s G-219 highway that links its Tibet and Xinjiang provinces. These plains are vital for India’s military mobility in what is known as Sub-Sector North (SSN).

This sub-sector, located between Siachen Glacier to the north and Aksai Chin on the other side, prevents a territorial linkup between China and Pakistan. The LAC with the Gilgit-Baltistan region in the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) is 80 km to the west of Depsang.

This area is also part of the ancient trade route between Tibet, Ladakh and Central Asia through the Karakoram that is controlled by India. Being a strategic, high-altitude pass, it provides a gateway into each other’s territory for either side. Though experiencing strong winds and low temperature, the 18,200-ft-high pass largely remains free of ice-caps throughout the year due to geographical and environmental conditions.

Depsang has been a traditional hotspot, with significant incursions by China having been reported in 2013 and 2015. This is among the two dozen or so sensitive areas earmarked along the LAC, out of which there are 13 where incursions occur frequently.

In 2013, a platoon-sized contingent of China’s Peoples’ Liberation Army set up a camp in the dry river bed of Raki Nala of the Depsang sector, about 30 km south of DBO. Indian forces responded by setting up their own camp about 300 m away. The stand-off continued for nearly 20 odd days though there were no untoward incidents. The dispute was resolved on May 5 after negotiations.

Following the 2015 incursions, the Indian Army conducted a full-fledged war game taking into consideration multiple Chinese thrusts into the SSN area. Operational tactics and logistics were validated and defences in that sector were reviewed, with some tweaking of force structures. The concept of Integrated Battle Groups (IBG) for the LAC was evolved, with the bolstering of the Army brigade responsible for that sector reported to be the first step in this direction. IBGs, the concept of which is also being implemented at a different scale for the western frontier, include elements of all fighting and support arms under a single command.