Army Chief General Bipin Rawat will visit Sikkim on 29 June in the backdrop of a standoff between Indian troops and Chinese army along the Sino-India border in the sensitive sector, which is threatening to further strain the bilateral ties.
The Army chief will take stock of the operational matters and interact with top commanders in the formation headquarters of the force in the border state.
Gen Rawat's visit to Sikkim comes amid mounting tension between the two armies along the border following a scuffle between Indian troops and the personnel of China's People's Liberation Army in a remote area earlier this month.
The genesis of the latest face-off is understood to have had a link to Donglang, a narrow but strategically important tri-junction of India, China and Bhutan.
Official sources described Gen Rawat's visit as routine.
During the two-day-long visit, Gen Rawat will travel to a number of other formation headquarters in the Northeast and review various operational matters in the region – a strategically key region having most of the 3,488-km-long-border with China.
Nathu La Pass' Re-Opening Depends on India: China
Chinese foreign ministry said that the re-opening of the Nathu La pass depends on whether the Indian side would “correct mistakes in time”.
The pass allows Indian officially-organised pilgrim’s entry into Tibet.
In 2015, China agreed to allow Indian officially-organised pilgrims to enter Tibet through Nathu La pass in the Sikkim section of the China-India boundary.
China Says India Has "Hidden Agenda" in Sikkim StandOff
China virtually accused India of having a "hidden agenda" in the current military standoff with it in the Sikkim sector where Beijing has a territorial dispute with Bhutan.
Taking a dig at India, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said that Bhutan is a universally recognised sovereign country.
Lu also hinted that India was objecting to China’s efforts to build the road in Donglang area of the Sikkim sector on behalf of Bhutan which does not have diplomatic ties with Beijing.
"Hope countries can respect the sovereignty of the country. The China-Bhutan boundary is not delineated, no third party should interfere in this matter and make irresponsible remarks or actions," he said.
"If any third party, out of hidden agenda, interferes, it is disrespect of the sovereignty of Bhutan. We don't want to see this as Bhutan is a country entitled to sovereignty by the international community," Lu said.
Indian Bunker in Sikkim Removed by China: Sources
China has removed an old bunker of the Indian Army located at the tri-junction of India, China and Bhutan in Sikkim by using a bulldozer after the Indian side refused to accede to its request, according to official sources.
The incident that broke out in the first week of June in Doka La general area in Sikkim had led to a face-off between the two forces, triggering tension in the Sikkim section of the India-China border, the sources said on 29 June.
The forcible removal of the old bunker by using heavy machinery like a bulldozer came when the Indian side did not agree to a request by the Chinese authorities to dismantle it, the sources said.
China is believed to have not taken kindly to India building many new bunkers and upgrading older ones along the border in Sikkim in the recent past to augment its defences against the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the sources said.
Read the full story on The Quint.
The India-China Standoff
China has accused Indian troops of "crossing the boundary" in the Sikkim section and demanded their immediate withdrawal, while asserting that it has shut down the Nathu La pass entry for Indian pilgrims travelling to Kailash Mansarovar because of the border standoff.
China also said that it has lodged diplomatic protests with India, both in New Delhi and Beijing, alleging that the Indian troops trespassed into Chinese territory in the Sikkim sector.
The Indian Army has not commented on the face-off.
Chinese defence ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang said on Monday that recently China has begun the construction of a road in Donglang region, but was stopped by Indian troops crossing the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
(With inputs from PTI.)
(This admission season, The Quint got experts from CollegeDekho.com on board to answer all your college-related queries. Send us your questions at eduqueries@thequint.com.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)