India says China hindered Indian border patrols, rejects allegations of trespassing

India says China hindered Indian border patrols, rejects allegations of trespassing

New Delhi: India said on Thursday that Chinese troops had stood in the way of regular Indian patrols along their disputed border in flare-ups at two locations this month and called for stability on the front line.

India rejected China's allegations that Indian troops crossed over to the Chinese side of the frontier in Ladakh and Sikkim, asserting that New Delhi has been taking responsible approach towards border management.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said it was the Chinese side that recently undertook activities hindering India's normal patrols in the areas.

"Any suggestion that Indian troops had undertaken activity across the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Western Sector or the Sikkim sector is not accurate," Srivastava said.

"Indian troops are fully familiar with the alignment of the Line of Actual Control in the India-China border areas and abide by it scrupulously. All Indian activities are entirely on the Indian side of the LAC," he said.

The LAC is the de-facto border between the two countries.

"In fact, it is the Chinese side that has recently undertaken activity hindering India's normal patrolling patterns. Indian side has always taken a very responsible approach towards border management. At the same time, we are deeply committed to ensuring India's sovereignty and security," he said.

China has accused India of unilaterally attempting to change the status of the un-demarcated border in Ladakh.

The two countries have in recent years taken steps to build confidence between their militaries while expanding commercial ties. But the border remains an unresolved issue over which they went to war in 1962 and tensions erupt sometimes.

Troops briefly skirmished nearly the eastern Indian state of Sikkim earlier this month and have also been locked in a weeks-long face-off in the Galwan region in the western Himalayas.

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