Chinese buildup in Pangong Tso poses fresh challenge

Chinese buildup in Pangong Tso poses fresh challenge

The situation at Pangong Tso, the site of the other ongoing standoff between India and China, has taken a serious turn with Chinese troops using the six-week period to fortify defences that may be difficult to dismantle, if and when talks take place on a pullback. People familiar with the details told ET that while all the attention has been on Galwan Valley, the Chinese have quietly built big, seemingly permanent, structures in the area between Fingers 4 and 8 in Pangong Tso. Ground reports as well as fresh satellite images available with the armed forces show that after occupying the area up to the feature called Finger 4 — located more than 5 km inside India’s perception of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) — in early May, the Chinese side has carried out a big construction project that includes several new structures. A marina-like facade has come up near the lake with hardened defences along the ridge line. All these constructions, sources said, have been carried out in just over a m…