The tunnel would reduce the travel time to the Ladakh region by 15-20 per cent and would come up close to the Atal tunnel near Rohtang Pass, reports Megha Manchanda.
Delivering a thinly veiled message to Pakistan from its soil, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said activities across borders characterised by the 'three evils' of terrorism, extremism and separatism are unlikely to encourage trade, energy flows and connectivity.
India's tactical and operational response demonstrated its ability to prosecute tri-service operations, even without a formal tri-service doctrine or the higher command structure needed to coordinate it, points out Ajai Shukla.
In another feat, Lt Jamyang Tsewang, the first commissioned naval officer from Ladakh, also successfully graduated as a qualified helicopter pilot, according to the Indian Navy.
People familiar with the situation in the region said the two sides were engaged in trying to resolve the dispute, but there was no indication of a positive outcome yet as both the armies continued to bolster their positions in disputed areas of Pangong Tso and Galwan Valley and Demchok.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said India is a peace-loving nation that never resorts to any kind of aggression but is always prepared to give a befitting reply if provoked or threatened.
No fresh batch of Amarnath Yatra pilgrims was allowed to leave the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu for Kashmir as a precautionary measure in view of the fifth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 on Monday, officials said.
In the last couple of weeks, the Chinese forces have brought in heavy air superiority aircraft like the Sukhoi-30 and its strategic bombers to the rear locations which have been detected flying near the Indian territory maintaining the 10 km plus distance from the boundary.
'If Modi is re-elected again, we can forget these things for a long time.'
Although the Supreme Court has mandated the Centre to conduct the polls by the end of September, a spate of terrorist attacks in J&K could cause delays.
In his first engagement outside the national capital, the President confers a rare honour on a brave, young, regiment.
The Indian Army has occupied several key heights in the strategically located Rezang-La and Reqin-La areas on the southern bank of the lake since the end of August.
'Trump's disregard for norms and institutions could prove very costly for America's social fabric.'
During the meeting, it was reiterated that "restoration of peace and tranquillity, and respect for the LAC are the essential basis for restoration of normalcy in bilateral relations", it said.
The frequency of day and night operations by frontline fighter jets is a signal that India will continue to put pressure on China until the status quo ante is restored in all the areas in eastern Ladakh including Pangong Tso, Gogra and Hot Springs, government sources said.
The Chinese side has particularly bolstered its presence in the Galwan Valley, erecting around 100 tents in the last two weeks and bringing in heavy equipment for construction of bunkers, notwithstanding the stiff protest by Indian troops. There have been reports of multiple incidents of transgressions by Chinese troops in several areas in Eastern Ladakh.
The sources said both sides held extensive deliberations on modalities for disengagement of troops from all the friction points in eastern Ladakh at the talks.
The chief was also briefed extensively about the air maintenance operations in support of the Indian Army and the paramilitary troops there.
Asserting that sovereignty and territorial integrity of China are "sacred and inviolable", the country's national legislature has adopted a new law on the protection and exploitation of the land border areas, which could have bearing on Beijing's border dispute with India.
The visit comes a week after 20 Indian Army personnel were killed in a brutal assault by the Chinese military in Galwan Valley which escalated the border tension.
He will succeed incumbent Rajiv Gauba, who completes his unprecedented five-year term in the top bureaucratic post this month-end.
Singh and Esper also deliberated on ways to further boost bilateral defence and security cooperation, they said, adding the telephonic conversation took place at the request of the US side.
The two countries reviewed the situation in the region during a fresh round of online diplomatic talks under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on border affairs.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday asserted that the government will not allow India's pride to be hurt under any circumstances even as he said bilateral talks were on at military and diplomatic levels to resolve the row.
The Jaishankar-Wang talks came amid the dragging border row in eastern Ladakh that entered its fifth year in May.
"I still have not heard a credible explanation as to why they chose to bring that size of forces to that sector of our border. Now, if peace and tranquility is disturbed and attempts are being made to change the LAC status quo unilaterally and large forces are brought to the border in contravention of written agreements, then obviously the relationship will be impacted," he said.
The talks between India and China on the border row in eastern Ladakh have helped 'build trust' and the situation in the region has been normal since the disengagement in the Pangong Tso areas in February, Chief of Army Staff General M M Naravane said on Thursday, exuding confidence of resolution of the 'remaining issues'.
Two days ago, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar asserted that Pakistan-occupied Kashmir was, is and will always be part of India.
The visit by the MPs comes nearly two months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met top leaders of Jammu and Kashmir on June 24.
In a statement, the ministry of home affairs said the UT of Ladakh consists of two districts of Kargil and Leh while the rest of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir is in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.
The MEA said the two sides shared their perspectives on the matter in the talks held in a friendly and cordial atmosphere.
In the next few days, Indian Army will carry out a detailed verification to check actual implementation of the disengagement process, he said. It is learnt that the mutual disengagement in Gogra (patrolling point 17A) is expected to be completed by Thursday.
The jawan underwent an emergency surgery at the Army's Research Referral (R&R) Hospital in New Delhi, and his severed hand was stitched back, they said.
The main focus will be on the situation in eastern Ladakh where Indian and Chinese troops are locked in an eyeball-to-eyeball face-off in sensitive areas like Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley, Demchok and Daulat Beg Oldie
The clear assertion by New Delhi came ahead of a fresh round of Lt General-level talks between the Indian army and the Chinese PLA which government sources said is set to take place within the next two days.
The athlete from Nagaland became the first Paralympics medallist from northeast India. He had also won a bronze medal at the Hangzhou Para Asian Games last year.
GST collections in July rose 10.3 per cent to over Rs 1.82 lakh crore, mainly driven by domestic transactions in goods and services, according to official data released on Thursday. This is the third-highest-ever monthly collection recorded since the indirect tax regime was rolled out 7 years ago on July 1, 2017. According to the data, total refunds stood at Rs 16,283 crore in July.
Video footage showed 'Himveers' dressed in white uniforms and chanting slogans of -- Bharat Mata ki Jai and Vande Mataram as the tricolour flies high. Two of the soldiers were seen holding the tricolour as they marched in the snow.
'The Pangong Tso lake is frozen from September-October to February-March. The windchill factor is phenomenal. The night temperature goes to minus 40. The area is like a barren desert. You are out in the open with no trees or bushes to take cover.'
Out of 18, four personnel were critically injured but they are responding to treatment and are stable now, people familiar with the matter said.
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