After Indian Army delayed summer exercise along LAC due to COVID-19, China moved into key strategic
China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) moved into key positions in Ladakh after the Indian Army delayed summer exercise along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in early March due to COVID-19. The exercise was delayed after some soldiers were infected with the coronavirus. According to a report by ET, China moved its forces towards key strategic positions thereby cutting off the access to areas which were patrolled by Indian forces before. Annual joint exercise postponed after Army personnel tested COVID-19 positive The report further states that the joint exercise, which takes place in Sub Sector North (SSN) every year and conducted by the Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police, was postponed after Army personnel tested positive in March. As per the report, China postponed its exercise too but surprised Indian troops by a quick redeployment in the Galwan valley and the Finger Area along Pangong Tso lake. On March 18 it was reported that a 34-year-old soldier had tested positive for COVID-19 in Leh, becoming the first case of the coronavirus in the Indian Army. Earlier today, security agencies submitted a detailed report to the government on the Chinese military build-up in Eastern Ladakh to analyze how it was able to bring in so many troops into the area. The report includes all the details about the Chinese build-up in different sectors from the topmost area including the Daulat Beg Oldi sector and the Pangong Tso sector, reported ANI. China had planned deeper incursion into the Indian side Beginning in the first week of May, China deployed more than 5,000 troops in the Eastern Ladakh sector along the Line of Actual Control. The Chinese troops wanted to do a further deeper incursion into the Indian side but the timely deployment of troops by Indian forces thwarted their plans. While talks are on to resolve the ongoing dispute in Ladakh there is no major movement of the PLA troops at the sites where it has stationed itself along the LAC.
