New Delhi: The Indian Army have reportedly expressed serious concern over massive construction by China in the Amo Chu river valley in Bhutan, India Today reported.
Amo Chu is close to the strategic Doklam plateau, from where India’s Siliguri corridor is in direct line of sight of China’s PLA (People’s Liberation Army).
The area is not too far from the India-China-Bhutan Doklam tri-junction, the site of an intense military stand-off between India and China in 2017 over the construction of a road by Beijing.
The latest image published by India Today shows the PLA’s permanent habitation for its troops along with communication towers in Amo Chu.
Close to 1,000 permanent military hutments as well as multiple temporary sheds have come up in recent months to house thousands of PLA troops.
After facing strong residence from the Indian Army in Doklam, the PLA is attempting to approach the same ridge through an alternate axis so that it can bypass Indian defences to the west of Doklam, the report said.
According to Indian military planners, any activity in China-controlled Bhutanese territory to the west of Doklam would threaten India’s security interests.
Indian security experts say control of the Doklam plateau will give the Chinese strategic benefits. Besides offering a commanding view of the Chumbi Valley, located between Bhutan and Sikkim, the Doklam plateau overlooks the strategic Siliguri corridor to the south.
The top Indian Army leadership recently met Indian officials engaged in capacity-building of the Bhutanese military in Haa district. The massive Chinese build-up came for mention at the meeting. Haa district is immediate to the east of the disputed territories where China is building new villages.
Recently, Bhutan’s Prime Minister Lotay Tshering had caused a furore with his statement that Beijing had equal say in finding a resolution to the dispute over the Doklam plateau, which India considers illegally occupied by China.
In 2017, the Indian Army had countered the Chinese military’s illegal encroachment in the area, forcing the latter’s withdrawal.