China Has Built A “Sealed” Road That Passes To Within 150m Of LAC Ridge-Line

China is quickly building up its infrastructure, and a new road just across the strategically important Yangtse in the Tawang sector of Arunachal allows it to quickly send in more troops. However, India still controls the key ridge-line or high ground in the plateau.

“PLA can now get to key spots on the Yangtse plateau more easily than it could a year ago,” the Australian Strategic Policy Institute warned in a new study released on Tuesday. China has fixed up several important dirt roads and built a “sealed” road from Tangwu New Village to within 150 m of the LAC ridge-line.

China has constructed a ‘sealed’ road leading to within 150m of LAC ridge-line

China can quickly send more troops to the Tawang sector now because it is building up its infrastructure there so quickly.

The study is based on an analysis of satellite images of key areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the area. It comes after a fight between Indian and Chinese soldiers at Yangtse on December 9 left several soldiers on both sides hurt.

“India still holds the commanding position on the high ground of the Yangtse plateau, but China has made up for this disadvantage by building new military and transportation infrastructure that makes it easy to get troops into the area quickly,” the study said.

China has strengthened its military positions and infrastructure all along the 3,488-km LAC, which runs from eastern Ladakh to Arunachal. This shows that China has no plans to lower tensions with India any time soon.

India, of course, keeps a close eye on Arunachal Pradesh, especially the Tawang area that China calls “South Tibet.” To “hold” the 1,126-km LAC stretch in the state, India has a “more than adequate” number of troops and firepower, as well as better surveillance capabilities.

China has fixed up a few important dirt roads and built a “sealed” road from Tangwu New Village to within 150 metres of the LAC ridge line. “At the end of this road, there is also a small PLA camp. During the skirmish on December 9, Chinese troops were able to rush up to Indian positions because a new road had been built “the research showed.

At Galwan and Pangong Tso in eastern Ladakh, where troops have been pulled out and moved, the risk of conflict has gone down. On the Yangtse plateau, however, the risk of conflict is going up. “The recent provocative actions by Chinese troops to test the readiness of border outposts and change the status quo at Yangtse have set a dangerous precedent,” it said.

China has strengthened its military positions and infrastructure all along the 3,488-km LAC, which runs from eastern Ladakh to Arunachal. This shows that it has no plans to lower tensions with India any time soon.

India, of course, keeps a close eye on Arunachal Pradesh, especially the Tawang area that China calls “South Tibet.” To “hold” the 1,126-km LAC stretch in the state, India has a “more than adequate” number of troops and firepower, as well as better surveillance capabilities.

Since the long Sumdorong Chu standoff in 1986–1987, a senior Army officer said, “The PLA has always been unhappy about our presence on the Yangtse plateau, which overlooks its positions and roads.”

“Yes, China has made improvements to its infrastructure in this area. But our defences are also strong and we have enough reserves. After finding the 300 PLA soldiers who tried to change things at Yangtse on December 9, we could quickly bring in more troops “said the officer.

The ASPI study said that India’s defences along the Yangtse plateau are made up of a network of six small frontline outposts that are supplied by a forward base that is about 1.5 km from the LAC. Indian forces are based in “significant” deployments in valleys below the plateau that are connected by steep dirt tracks.

The Indian positions are not impregnable to a coordinated attack, the study said. It pointed out that satellite imagery shows that the dirt tracks or roads are already being damaged by erosion and landslides because of their steep slope, the weather, and the fact that they were not built very well.

The study said that if these dirt tracks were attacked during a “open conflict,” Indian positions on the front lines would be cut off from resupply. This, along with the PLA’s “surge capability,” could be decisive.