The Indian Army has denied earlier reports claiming evacuation of villages along the Sikkim border, where the Army is currently entangled in a standoff with their Chinese counterpart for the last two months.
On Thursday, a Chinese media house People's Daily tweeted that the Indian troops had ordered the evacuation of Nathang village which is around 35 km from the site of standoff.
Also Read: Exclusive: Army Mobilises Sappers, Engineers Along China Border
However, a senior army officer told News18 that no village had been proposed to be evacuated, debunking earlier reports.
While both the Indian Army and the People's Liberation Army have been gradually mobilising troops towards the border, a source from the government told Times of India that no major mobilisation had been detected from the PLA.
Any major PLA mobilisation towards our border will be detected since it will take around a week. Our well-acclimatised troops, backed by artillery, rockets and other heavy-calibre weapons, are currently deployed in the ‘no war, no peace’ mode. They are ready to respond quickly if required.
According to several media reports, the Indian Army has stationed troops along the LoC as a 'regular maintenance move'.
India and China locked horns over the Doklam tri-junction in June when the Indian troops stopped the Chinese Army from building a road, believing it would hinder the country's access to its north-eastern states.
While Bhutan and India maintain that the disputed site is Bhutanese property, China claims that the road will fall within its own territory.
(Love your mother tongue? This Independence Day, tell The Quint why and how you love your bhasha. You may even win a BOL t-shirt! Sing, write, perform, spew poetry – whatever you like – in your mother tongue. Send us your BOL at bol@thequint.com or WhatsApp it to 9910181818.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)