India's LAC crisis and broader National Security picture
China is trying to change the status Quo of India-China Border and aggressively used its Army to capture certain strategic locations on the India-China Border creating a new crisis in India.
To give a quick background. India was a colony of Britain for more than 200 years. When Britain departed India in 1947, various issues regarding India's Territorial Borders emerged. This was exasperated by creation of new State of Pakistan, dispute of Kashmir region and also dispute in Ladakh region on Chinese border. India has fought several wars (1948, 1965, 1971, 1999) with Pakistan over Kashmir region and also a war (1962) with China over Territorial dispute. But since a long time, there is peace on Border situation with China & Pakistan apart from few odd incidents. Last major military battle between India & Pakistan was in 1999.
The borders of India & Pakistan are established as LOC. Whereas both sides claim each others territory, neither side has tried to change the LOC by military aggression in last two decades. LOC between India & Pakistan is mostly fenced & strictly guarded by both sides. On the other hand, situation with China is more complex. There is no defined, demarcated & accepted Border between India & China. Instead, there is a buffer region called Line of Actual control. This is a strip of few kilometers wide which is jointly patrolled by Indian & Chinese Army. This is a no man's land which is not occupied by any permanent Bunkers & military infrastructure. Both sides do constant surveillance/patrolling/reconnaissance of this region and occasionally scuffles do break out between India & China troops but these are always resolved with regular meetings with Chinese military. Since 1962 India-China War, this status quo is more or less maintained on the Border / LAC.
Chinese PLA regularly scuffles with Indian Army on LAC - Old 2017 Video of confrontation between PLA & Indian soldiers as PLA troops trying to enter Indian territory for Patrolling
What is China doing? - Reports indicate China's intrusion & occupation of certain strategic areas - But Modi Govt doesn't reveal clear facts on the situation
Few weeks ago, Chinese Army made certain strategic advancements on several points of LAC. Chinese Army moved into LAC Buffer zone, Crossed LAC at several locations & captured certain areas including strategic heights and built bunkers, thus settling down for a permanent stay. The exact scale of Chinese incursion is not known because Modi Govt is trying keep the facts on this situation under the wraps to avoid domestic embarrassment. Indian Government has not revealed much details about newly captured positions by Chinese Army but a diplomatic talks are going on. Govt has not revealed about how Chinese intrusion happened at such big scale & went undetected. These areas were supposed to be under constant surveillance and reconnaissance specially since India's move on Kashmir in August last year.
Defense journalist & retired Colonel Ajai Shukla and retired Lt General HS Panag have written detailed article explaining Chinese PLA intrusions and their recent activities. Since Indian Govt hasn't revealed the facts of the situation, i rely on facts & assessment of these reports.
Points of Intrusions on LAC starting last month (Photo - Ajai Shukla)
To summarize the situation. Chinese made intrusions on at least 6 LAC points - Chumar, Demchok, Chushul, Pangong Tso, Galwan & Depsang - starting from May 05 last month to capture certain strategic locations. How such large scale intrusion was missed by our military? There are no clear answers on this. But apparently, its believed that this was an intelligence failure. Chinese & Indians routinely carry out military drills in summers. China started massive buildup on LAC just before the incursions. This build up was perceived to be as just another summer exercise by Chinese military. India also do such exercises in summer time but this year due to Covid-19 emergency, our Army cancelled its exercise. Chinese crossed LOC unopposed & captured strategic locations. Galwan valley, which is a key conflict area right now, was previously not a point of contention. This has been in control of India since long but China now claims its rights over it. LAC which has been a contentious issue is becoming more complicated as China is now adding new territories to "list of disputed regions". Galwan Valley is also critical from point of view of India's construction of Daulat Beg Oldi road (DSDBO Road) which will connect Leh to Daulat Beg Oldie which is extreme point of Ladakh and our Airforce military base.
One of the many bridges on Daulet Beg Oldi (DSDBO Road) which cuts through harsh mountain range and rivers (Photo - Tribune India)
DSDBO Road runs parallel to LAC along Chinese controlled Aksai Chin region. Heights of Galwan Valley overlook a part of this road. Chinese Army if in control of Galwan Valley hills, can easily cut of DSDBO road in case of conflict (Photo - Opindia on left and ThePrint on right)
At Pangong area, the points of contention are mountain fingers on Coasts of Pangong Lake. This area was a buffer at LAC which was patrolled by Indian troops as well as Chinese PLA. Now Chinese PLA has usurped this area and built permanent bunkers. This area is now no longer accessible to Indian Army. According to Indian position, all these Mountain fingers newly captured by PLA are on Indian side of LAC and thus unquestionably Indian territory.
Captured Positions by Chinese PLA on Cost of Pangong Lake (Photo - BBC on left & Google maps on right)
Modi Govt narrative until Yesterday - De-escalation & peaceful resolution is in progress - Chinese Army is in withdrawal - Everything is getting to normalcy
Since last few weeks, Modi Govt has been dismissive about the seriousness of the situation. Modi Govt has been propagating the narrative that situation is "almost" resolved as both sides are making a peaceful withdrawal from conflict points. Several defense analysts like Ajai Shukla have pointed out that as per their ground knowledge, Chinese are not withdrawing from their positions and actually Chinese have taken a very hardline position in Diplomatic talks which are going on at the highest level of Indian & Chinese regional military commanders (Indian Govt don't reveal much about what's happening in these Diplomatic talks). But all this changed yesterday when Chinese Army killed 20 Indian soldiers. This incident happened when Modi Govt was propagating the narrative of De-escalation and peaceful resolution.
Indian Troops in Brutal fight with Chinese - Chinese attack was well planned & executed - India must rethink its rules of engagement
To avoid escalation at LAC, Indian & Chinese troops restrain from using Guns as per an old agreement. But that doesn't stop Chinese from inflicting casualties on Indian side. In fact, Chinese PLA use thuggish tactics of ambushing and assaulting Indian troops as a means of constant intimidation.
A melee weapon resembling to a spiked iron Rod used by Chinese PLA troops in attack on Indian soldiers
June 15 ambush of Indian troops by PLA was well planned in advanced to target Indian soldiers. As per some reports, Indian troops on Patrol of the area objected to some tents & observational posts of PLA on Indian side of LAC which triggered the clash. The Indian Patrol was lead by Colonel Ashutosh and few dozen soldiers. They were ambushed by hundreds of PLA troops armed with Spiked Rods, Bats, Stones & other kind of Melee weapons. Melee weapons were used keeping in view of "No Guns" rule at LAC. Indian soldiers being heavily outnumbered and without any weapons were badly beaten which result in death & injuries to many soldiers. PLA is also strategically using Galwan River flow to create obstacles for Indian Army. Galwan river flow, blocked by dam built by the Chinese, was released during the fight. Many of soldiers were beaten and thrown into the river. Casualties also happened on Chinese side but Chinese Govt never gave any official statement.
Dictator Xi is in weak position Domestically - Trying to take a Jingoistic stance on Hong Kong, South China Sea, India-China border & other fronts - Belt & Roads Project is strategic encirclement of India
China has adopted an aggressive foreign policy and Belt & Road is a critical part of it. Basically speaking Belt & Roads is an imperial policy of China to exercise its foreign policy. Its strategically taking over areas and assets in neighboring countries by taking over of physical infrastructure. In regards to us, Belt & Roads is strategic encirclement of India. Secondly, Belt & Roads is Debt Trap which puts foreign countries in enormous unsustainable debts which can be only repaid by handing over national assets to Chinese companies or Chinese Govt.
But all this is nothing new, the recent aggressive stance of Chinese has to do with domestic political situation of Dictator Xi. The Covid-19 crisis that emerged in Wuhan has sunk the popularity of Xi domestically and credibility of China internationally. Domestically, Xi & his Communist Party portrayed themselves as competent, technocratic and delivering leadership that delivered on economic prosperity and welfare of the country. But this has changed with China's disastrous early response to Covid-19 crisis which devastated not just China but now the entire world. And Xi's performance in this crisis has revealed him as a weak & incompetent leader. After all, China already having experienced SARS in 2003 should have the handled Covid-19 with utmost efficiency and urgency. But this was not the case. The exact nature of facts surrounding Covid-19 outbreak in China are also not clear. When and how did outbreak started? Why China covered it up initially? What mismanagement took place in December? All this is not known but questions are being raised in China as well as around the world.
China's brazen hard handed attitude towards Hong Kong and aggressive rhetoric on South China Sea in last few weeks is well known. There have also been reports on secret & illegal Nuclear weapon testing by Chinese. The situation with Hong Kong on new national security bill, aggressive patrolling of South China Sea, Violations of Taiwan airspace, Denying & restricting independent global investigation on Wuhan Corornavirus are signs of China's Jingoistic and contemptuous behavior. The broad based hacking of Australia's infrastructure in last few days is also a clear act of international aggression.
We are in a new world with different rules - No international order right now - Conventional channels of Diplomacy not working as they did - Jiski Lathi uski Bhains
It should also be understood that in this Global Pandemic, World order is not working like usual. International relations, Diplomacy, alliances & friendships etc are all shifting & changing everyday. India which strongly depends upon Trump & America for diplomacy cannot expect the same benefit these days. We are in a Global pandemic and Global economic recession. Every country in the world is trying to deal with its domestic Covid-19 situation. Some countries are in very bad shape while some are better - but all are busy dealing with massive health impact & economic devastation of Covid-19. In America, Trump is in very weak position domestically with re-elections coming in few months. Trump won't stand with India and confront China in this time as it will harm his re-election chances. And not to mention huge amount of medical supplies and equipment US is importing from China to fight Covid-19. US doesn't want to blow up this bridge.
Also India is not very popular in America and Europe either at this time. This is a fact which many defense experts and journalists also miss out. India is criticized by America & Europe for many reasons including grave human rights violation, Kashmir Blocakde, anti-Muslim laws (CAA NRC etc), suppression of basic liberties, silencing Press & Journalists, jailing of peaceful protesters & students etc. US Federal commission of Minorities have prepared a report strongly critical of Modi Govt which even calls for sanctions on India. Similarly, there are several legislation pending in EU Parliament regarding India's actions on Kashmir, CAA NRC, human rights violation by Modi Govt.
India is not viewed as a Liberal & Open Democracy by Europe & America under Modi Government. Modi Government was quick to dismiss the criticism of US & EU on India's track record on human rights. But Modi will now need the support of same countries to diplomatically outmaneuver China.
Another critical aspect of India-China dispute is failure of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization). A regional security block lead by China & Russia with India and Pakistan as members of the block. SCO was once believed to be a panacea for regional stability and an alternate to US hegemony in the region. Pakistan & India joined SCO in 2017. But regional differences specially among India, Pakistan & China were too difficult to resolve. Things got more complicated with China's Belt & Roads policy, Modi's bellicose policy on Kashmir & Xi's aggressive foreign policy.
Russia remains an all weather ally of India but as we are finding out, there are no permanent relationships in foreign policy. Russia is still mediating between India & China for resolution of LAC crisis but its yet to be seen if there are any positive outcomes of this diplomacy. Russia has also assured for early delivery of S-400 Missile defense system to India. Whether these assurances are fulfilled is yet to be seen.
China's aggressive stand on LAC - Is this a temporary situation? - Xi flexing his muscles to rebuild his shrinking credibility - Or is there something bigger at stake? - India in highly vulnerable position in present time - Kashmir remains our weak point
Chinese think long term. The present actions of Chinese were long in Cold Storage of Chinese military ready to be implemented at right time. What was the trigger? I think there are two main factors.
Firstly, is the most critical fact that our Defense Analysts have missed out. India is strategically in very weak position due to Abrogation of Article 370 last year. This is due to the fact that a lot of the Kashmir region is now gravely hostile to Indian Govt. People of Kashmir have completely lost faith in out military as well as Govt when Modi shredded Article 370 & 35A in a completely illegal & unconstitutional way. What are the implications? India cannot sustain a war in Kashmir region when people of the region have strong hostility to our Central Govt. A 1965 type war scenario may have different outcome if happens today.
Nevertheless, Indian military still had strong control over Kashmir but two major events have happened just in last few months. First is Covid-19 emergency. The situation with Covid-19 is very bad in India as virus is spreading at rapid rate. The virus has devastated the Indian economy and health system extensively. Its estimated that so far virus has infected less than 1% of population. In coming weeks, the virus will grow exponentially as India has started to relax lockdowns. This means more deaths & chaos and this may ultimately lead to grave social disorder and anarchy. Police & Para Military troops have been used extensively during lockdown and if situation deteriorates, even Army has to be deployed to protect Urban cities.
The Covid-19 crisis opened a window of opportunity for China & Pakistan. With economy of India pretty much destroyed and Social order is heading towards breakdown & anarchy, Pakistan & China are exploring their opportunities to make their moves.
Colonel Ashutosh Sharma killed by Pakistani infiltrators on May 03 (Photo - Rediff)
Since Covid-19 crisis started, a low intensity insurgency has also started in Kashmir which is mostly linked to Pakistan infiltration. Pakistani infiltrator have started targeting our Army & Para military forces which are positioned in Kashmir in very large numbers since August Last year post abrogation of article 370. This was precisely to contain any domestic rebellion & external interference by Pakistan in Kashmir. But Pakistan response over Kashmir in last several months was muted. Indian Govt was boosting about strength of India & weakness of Pakistan. Perhaps Pakistan was waiting for right time.
Indian Army Kills 8 Insurgents in 4 different Encounters in Pampore & Shopian region of Kashmir on June 18-19 (Photo - tolivelugu News)
Indian Military can still deal with Pakistan aggression in Kashmir easily, dealing with non state actors or a limited & localized conventional war with Pakistan Army. But now things got more complicated. The trouble started at North Eastern front in Ladakh as China is making its moves on LAC. The intentions of Chinese is not clear. But worse case scenario is frightening - A TWO FRONT WAR.
Nepal changes its Maps - What does it mean? - Nepal acting on behest of China - China's aggressive diplomacy is isolating India
Another interesting development is Nepal changing its border Maps. This move is not just done by Nepalese executive Govt but done & approved by full Parliament. Nepal in its new Map incorporates some Indian territories which are presently in our control.
Nepal practically doesn't have any military of its own (certainly no any match to our Indian military) neither it has capability to capture our territory. Why Nepal is incorporating new territory to its Maps? First of all, it should be understood that this Map business is habit of China. China presents these Maps from its old closets that shows XYZ region as once being part of China in past. This is also the pretext used by China to takeover entire South China sea. Apparently, Nepal is claiming part of Indian territory is undoubtedly doing on behest of China. In case of a military conflict with India, China may seize these territories of India. Then it can continue to occupy these territories. Nepal can lease these territories to China and put them under Chinese protectorship. India should be aware of all these eventualities & threats.
Worst case scenario - A two front war - India's chances are not good - A big chunk of Indian territory may be lost to China & Pakistan
Pakistan infiltration in Kashmir will be supported by big part of local population. The position of Indian military will be weakened as our battalions will have to be diverted towards Chinese front where battle would be even more harder. And all this while our domestic economy is in complete shambles. Wars are fought & won on basis of strong economy. A nation with broken economy, a raging epidemic and heading towards breakdown of domestic Social order cannot win a two front war.
More dimensions of India China War - Conflict won't just be Military fought on the borders - Cyber space, Economic & financial areas will also be fronts in war
The capability of China in Cyber space is well known. China, if decides, can take down India's critical Infrastructure like financial & banking system, Power plants & electricity grids, Government web portals & databases & pretty much a lot of our IT network. Apparently, India's capability in Cyber Space dwarfs to that of China. India never invested in this critical area and has little capability to retaliate on these fronts.
India's economy is dependent on China (not the other way around). Actually a lot of the world's economy depends upon China in this age of Globalization. Those people calling for Boycott of Chinese goods are have no understanding of complex & critical dependency of our economy on Chinese imports. Most of our sectors including Pharmaceutical, IT & Electronics, Biomedical, Automobiles, Power etc heavily rely on Chinese imports. 80% of our Pharmaceutical raw materials are imported from China. Most of our IT & Electronics products are imported from China ranging from Computers & Mobile phones to Communication & Network devices. India has currently placed 10,000 ventilators from China to fight Covid-19. Similarly Auto spare parts, fiber cables, Semiconductors etc are critical imports from China.
The trade imbalance between India & China is reflected in numbers as well. China can easily manage without our Cotton & other raw materials but can we manage without Chinese Capital goods?
India under Covid-19 emergency - Worst public health crisis in its history - Leading to economic collapse & social instability - India doesn't want war in this time of instability & uncertainty
India is facing its worst public health crisis with Covid-19 pandemic. The Wuhan virus has spread to all states, cities, rural areas & villages though most cases are getting detected only at urban cities (most rural India & backward states have no healthcare out reach). The impact of virus on economy, industry, Banking system and employment has been catastrophic. With breakdown of economy is arising social disorder which will only get worse in coming days. The healthcare system which has been structurally weak is now completely torn apart in this pandemic. Under these conditions, a war (or a two front war!) is the last thing a country wants. China has read this situation pretty well and using our weakness to its advantage.
A wake up call for India - Modi & Shah are egotistic Morons, not Geniuses as portrayed by media - Only good at Event management & self promotion - No substance & vision in policy making - Generals like Bipin Rawat & VK Singh also incompetent - Modi's Guru & NSA Ajit Doval is missing in action in time of crisis
Modi & Shah's failure on Chinese intrusion on LAC is just a tip of the iceberg. Modi has wrecked India in many regards. Destroyed Indian economy in last 4 years, Destroying the social fabric of India's multicultural society, Destroyed & subverted Indian institutions including Judiciary, Investigating agencies (CBI, ED, NIA etc), Election Commission etc.
The hallmark of Modi is projection of massive failures as historical success. The failures of Demonetization & GST are well known. Even on the very critical issue of Chinese intrusion, Modi has lied & misinformed the nation. Just Yesterday, Modi claimed that Chinese troops have not intruded in India's territory. This flies in face of reality & insults the sacrifice of 20 Indian Soldiers who fought tooth & nail against Chinese intruders.
The intelligence failure on China's intrusion is more alarming because India's military and Intelligence agencies are supposed to be highly competent. These agencies were supposed to be independent and insulated from foolhardy political circus of our ignorant Politicians. But unfortunately, there are Pro Modi Generals & people like NSA Ajit Doval who have even subverted our military & intelligence agencies. The wrought in Indian military inflicted by Modi will take a long time to clean up.
Foreign policy personified - India's foreign policy is a selfie Photo ops - Event management, foreign tours, oversees holidays & self promotion by Modi - But no concrete direction and substance in foreign policy
Modi had 18 meetings with Xi in last 6 years including multiple state trips - Various Photo Ops of Modi & Xi
Its well known that Modi was on world tour in his first 5 years of rule visiting all regional and non regional nations multiple times. This includes 5 trips to China (Xi has also visited India) and 18 meetings with Xi in last 6 years. But foreign trips, photo-ops, mega events & PR circuses cannot be a substitution for real substantive foreign policy. Also interesting to note that India did not have any foreign minister (Minister of external affairs) in first 5 years of Modi rule. There was a ceremonial foreign minister Sushma Swaraj, who i believe never indulged in any real diplomatic work. In India, its well known that she used to work as good Samaritan in helping people to get Visas & passports and helping people in Social media. But the job of foreign minister is not managing passport.visas on Facebook & Twitter. Also Sushma Swaraj was never seen to be accompanying Modi in any of the important meetings & foreign trips. (You can see Trump or Obama always with their secretary of states while meeting a foreign leader. Similarly Russia's foreign minister Lavrov is deeply involved in diplomatic affairs. Such is the norm in every other country).
But its not a surprise that Modi sidelined the foreign minister. Modi sidelined the finance minister, defense ministry & other ministries throughout last six years. That's the governance style of Modi & Shah government - a two man show. Recently Home ministry under Amit Shah has sidelined the Health ministry in this Covid-19 emergency. All the ministries & institutions have become rubber stamps where Modi & Shah take all the decisions and everybody complies. But running a country like India (or any state) requires a lot of work which has to be done be experts, institutions, technocrats & an established apparatus. A country cannot be run like a two man show.
A way forward - Need transparency, introspection & accountability - A well directed & visionary foreign policy - Strengthening & modernization of Military - A consensus with opposition Political parties on key national strategic decisions - Firing of incompetent officials (present CDS, NSA & RAW chief) - Decoupling of Indian economy from China to be a long term critical goal
Present situation is the most serious National security crisis in recent history of India. Things that should be done. First and foremost Govt needs to be transparent about the situation and inform the country about the facts on LAC crisis.
1. Measure & analyze the situation thoroughly - What's really going on at LAC? What does China want? What does Pakistan want? Are we really heading towards the worst case scenario? Or is this just a temporary skirmish where Dictator Xi is trying to flex his muscles to gain traction for domestic political situation? The geopolitical situation of region has to be assessed.
2. Indian military should immediately get mobilized to occupy & enforce vulnerable & strategic locations on LAC as well as keep a vigil on LOC. Any unmanned or vacant areas of LAC should be immediately deployed with Army troops to check any infiltration.
3. The question of dislodging Chinese from occupied LAC positions & India's territory is a complex issue specially as i don't have full knowledge of ground reality. But India should now prepare military plans for evicting Chinese troops from Strategic locations like Galwan Valley & Pangong coast. While India should work diplomatically to resolve the situation, the military options should be prepared & ready to be rolled out when and if need arises.
4. Diplomacy should remain our first and preferable option to resolve this crisis given our vulnerable position in present times. India should continue to diplomatically engage with China to diffuse the situation. The diplomatic engagement with China should involve our Prime Minister, Foreign Minister (MEA), Defense Minister, National security Adviser & other higher echelons of our Government. I am against this new formula of sending our military commanders to do diplomatic talks with Chinese Military leaders. Military to Military talks & discussions make sense in normal situations. When enemy is making aggressive posturing and killing our soldiers, sending our military commanders to do diplomacy is denigrating their standing & emboldening the enemy as it demonstrates our weakness. The latest Chinese attacks came only few days after our military commanders had formal talks with Chinese counterparts. Also judging by the nature of Chinese, they won't negotiate in good faith specially as they are in position of strength.
India should engage with other countries including US, EU, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Vietnam, Malaysia etc for diplomatic support explaining them the urgency to deal with Chinese aggression. Diplomacy should be used to sway Nepal, Sri Lanka & other regional countries from control of China.
5. Modi should regularly organize all party meetings inviting all major parties including Congress, Shiv Sena, NCP, TMC, National Congress, CPM etc and clearly present all facts on LAC situation with full transparency. All opposition parties should be kept informed of the situation regularly. While making any major strategic decision, Modi should have an understanding with major opposition Political parties.
6. Modi should quit all the idiotic & mindless things being done for domestic political reasons. Things like CAA NRC, Abrogation of article 370, jailing of civil rights activists/students/peaceful protesters, using Police & investigating agencies to fabricate cases against activists & students, dividing country on religious lines, silencing free Press and independent journalists - All these things are being projected as great charade of Nationalism. While these things have undermined the social & economic stability of our country, they have also undermined our global reputation and image.
All this hoopla about Modi's great election victory doesn't fool foreign countries which can clearly see Modi as authoritarian dictator. India should demonstrate to the world that we are DIFFERENT from China. China is a brutal authoritarian dictatorship while India is a healthy liberal Democracy.
7. Long term goal of India includes economic development and de-coupling from China. This won't happen only by foolish slogans of Boycott China. This is a long road which takes great amount of work - technocratic management & planning of economy, sustainable & continued investment by the government in economy & Infrastructure, human resources development & rebuilding the country. Strengthening our industry & manufacturing to cut dependence on foreign imports.
8. India also needs to overhaul & invest in its military. Despite years of talks about modernization, hardly any work has been done. Most of our military hardware is obsolete & old generation. Our military lacks investment in new generation defense systems like Super Sonic Missile technology, Nuclear technology upgradation, Modern Fighter Planes, Submarines etc. But we also need more focus on new unconventional defense areas specially in Cyberspace. Cyber warfare is an area where China is light years ahead of India. This deficit gap must be reduced. Defense of our critical national Infrastructure in cyber space and monitoring Chinese behavior on Social media is important.
9. Stop politicization of Army and keep military & intelligence agencies completely insulated & independent from domestic politics. Keep defense & foreign policy insulated from domestic politics. Don't make Army into servants for PR stunts like Phool Barsao ceremonies, Surgical strike political promotion and doing unnecessary work like organizing Art of living festival. Military should be strictly meant for its specific purpose - that is national defense and nothing else.
BJP's election Posters promotes Modi on Surgical Strikes
Indian Army building Bridge on Delhi's Yamuna Banks for Cultural event in 2016 organized by Pro BJP spiritual Guru. Army is regularly being used as for useless PR stunts and event management
10. Inquiry should be ordered to investigate crisis on LAC. Reasons for intelligence failure and military blunder at LAC must be investigated. Firstly, a committee by Military experts (people like Gen Deepak Kapoor, Gen HS Panag & Gen BC Khanduri) should be assigned the task of identifying & investigating failures & negligence by Military & Intelligence agencies. This committee should make its reports public.
11. Complete all Border Infrastructure in Ladakh including pending work on Highways, Roads, Bridges, Railway lines etc on top priority basis. Indian Military should have full and redundant accessibility of entire Ladakh region at all times and during all seasons.
12. Last but not the least - Heads gotta role. There should be strict accountability of Military & intelligence officers who failed to deliver. RAW chief, CDS & NSA must be replaced. RAW was supposed to provide critical information on China's threats specially after our Kashmir policy. NSA Ajit Doval was supposed to anticipate all these threats and keep the political government informed of these eventualities. CDS Bipin Rawat was supposed to oversee our military and to facilitate timely strategic military decisions which our Politicians might not comprehend at times.
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