Srinagar/Aug,31 : The Srinagar-Leh highway has been closed for the civilians in view of the fresh “provocative” military movements by the Chinese troops on the intervening night of August 29-30 in eastern Ladakh. The Srinagar-Leh highway has been closed for the civilians with immediate effect. The road will remain open only for the defence forces and vehicles.
The Indian Army said on Monday that the Chinese troops attempted to unilaterally change the status quo on the southern bank of the Pangong Tso Lake area in eastern Ladakh.
In a statement, the defence ministry said, “On the night of 29/30 August 2020, PLA troops violated the previous consensus arrived at during military and diplomatic engagements during the ongoing standoff in Eastern Ladakh and carried out provocative military movements to change the status quo.”
The Indian troops detected activity by a sizeable number of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) during the night, the Army said.
Sources in the Indian Army said, “Chinese Army had tried to transgress into Indian areas using a sizeable number of troops but the Indian Army preempted the Chinese attempt and foiled their move.””The area was strengthened by quick deployment of more troops,” it said.
Army Spokesperson Col Aman Anand said a brigade commander-level flag meeting is currently in progress at Chushul to resolve the issues.”The Indian Army is committed to maintaining peace and tranquility through dialogue, but is also equally determined to protect its territorial integrity,” he added.
