Call to Develop Infrastructure Along China Border

By R Dutta Choudhury

Guwahati, Sep 14 : Though the decision of the Government of India to deploy two additional battalions of the Army to improve vigil along the border with China is a positive development, there is urgent need for developing the infrastructure along the international border to deal with any eventuality, said former GOC of the 4 Corps of the Army, Lt Gen (Retd) DB Shekhatkar.

Talking to The Assam Tribune, Lt Gen Shekhatkar, who is well versed with the ground situation along the border with China in Arunachal Pradesh, said that the Government of India should have initiated steps to boost security measures along the border long back.

He said that though the Government of India is trying to maintain cordial relation with China, the lessons learnt from the 1962 war should never be forgotten and India should always be ready to face any eventuality.

Lt Gen Shekhatkar said that said that for years, the need for increasing the strength of the Army was felt and only now the Government has decided to deploy two additional divisions. He said that the decision to create a battalion of Arunachal Scouts is also a positive development and hoped that the personnel of the battalion would play a vital role in guarding the country’s borders. He said that there should be at least two more battalions of the Arunachal Scouts to deal with the situation.

The former Army officer pointed out that the Ladakh Scouts are doing a commendable job for years and hoped that the Arunachal Scouts would be able to emulate the achievements of the Ladakh scouts. He pointed out that the personnel of the Arunachal Scouts would be well versed with the ground situation and the stake of the local youths in guarding the frontier would be much higher than anyone coming from other parts of the country. Moreover, the creation of the battalion would provide employment opportunities to the local youths, which is also a positive development, he added.

However, Lt Gen Shekhatkar expressed the view that India is still lagging behind China in infrastructure development along the border and only increasing force deployment would not help in case of any eventuality. He said that priority must be given on construction of new roads leading to the international border to facilitate movement of men and machinery whenever required and there must be multiple entry points to the forward posts along the border. At this moment, only one road connects Tawang near the border with China and if that road is blocked, India would have a tough time, he pointed out.