India-China Border Dispute

India and China fought a war in 1962, but the border issues have lingered on, with Beijing claiming the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and New Delhi considering China-controlled Aksai Chin as its territory. Major border tension occurred in 2014, when Chinese troops reportedly entered Indian territory in Ladakh. The standoff was resolved after three weeks.

"Hot Springs” is not just a place but an epitaph of exemplary bravery displayed by Indian Police and their supreme sacrifice while protecting the territorial integrity of the country under extreme geo-climatic conditions. Hot Springs is situated in the Aksai Chin area of Ladakh, having an inhospitable terrain at an altitude ranging between approx. 15,000-18,000 ft. The journey to Hot Springs is covered by road from Chandigarh to Leh.

In pursuance to the decision taken in 1960, a group of about 20-25 police officers/men representing various States and Central Police Forces visit the Hot Springs, Ladakh (J&K) every year to pay homage to the ten (10) valiant policemen, who laid down their lives in the service of motherland on October 21, 1959 in an unequal combat with heavily armed Chinese troops.

Since 1953 onwards, Leh (Ladakh) and its frontier check posts had been entrusted to CRPF. This was the time when Indo-China border was not militarised, and the 2500 km Indo-Tibetan border was manned by police personnel of ITBF & CRPF. The only Army Garrison was in Leh. It was believed that there is no threat from “friendly” China.

During this time China completed the strategic development of construction of a highway through a traditional caravan route passing from Sinkiang to Tibet via Aksai Chin. Not only did they publicly announce the completion of highway but The People’s Daily, in October 1959, published a map of the region showing Aksai Chin as Chinese territory. PLA also moved in and established itself.

On the fateful day of Oct. 21, 1959, 10 valiant Police personnel laid down their lives fighting at 16,000 ft altitude, in extremely cold conditions and against all odds, in an unequal combat with heavily armed Chinese troops. As recounted by Shri Sonam Wangyal “they were about 200-300 in numbers. When the two sides came face to face, a standoff ensued and eventually the Indian patrol was surrounded and outnumbered by Chinese troops”. Before actual action commenced, Shri Sonam Wangyal recalled “Chinese Commander and Karam Singh engaged in a showdown with both vehemently claiming the area and asking the other to retreat.... This continued for three hrs and suddenly Chinese side started firing.”

In intensely cold and harsh terrain, Policemen went way beyond their duty to protect the nation from heavily armed Chinese forces. The valour of Police Jawans fighting at 16,000 ft. altitude, in freezing conditions and against a well-equipped and heavily armed army regiment, is a rare saga of courage and commitment to duty.

This event brought together the nation and eventually the long-required change in Security doctrine of the country. India observes October 21st each year as Police Commemoration Day to honour Police personnel who have laid down their lives in the line of duty. What makes the Police Forces unique is that its members take an oath to make the supreme sacrifice, on the altar of duty. In recent years the number of those who have attained martyrdom has been around 400-500 per annum.

China honed its "salami tactics" in the Himalayas in the 1950s, when it grabbed the Aksai Chin plateau by surreptitiously building a strategic highway through that unguarded region. Aksai Chin, part of the original princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, provided China with the only passageway between its restive regions of Tibet and Xinjiang.

Although there is a general framework to settle the India-China border dispute, neither side can move forward with any agreement because a) both sides are "fundamentally distrustful of each other"; and b) domestic politics will prevent either side from making any concessions. He said the talks have reached an impasse, and there is no hope of settling the issue in the near future.

Domestic politics play a major role in the dispute, and neither side would be able to make concessions without angering their domestic audience. Although China is not a democracy like India, the Chinese Government is afraid of rousing a public that is already sensitive about border issues.