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After Violent Clash, China Claims Sovereignty Over Galwan Valley for First Time in Decades

For India, Galwan was always seen as the area where the lay of the Line of Actual Control was not disputed.

Satellite image of the Galwan valley at the point where the Galwan river enters the Shyok river Photo Credit: The Wire/Google Maps

New Delhi: The Chinese military’s statement on the violent clash in eastern Ladakh has a claim that China has not made directly for decades – sovereignty over entire the Galwan valley.

The Indian Army has stated that 20 Indian soldiers were killed in action in a violent face-off with Chinese soldiers in the Galwan area on Monday night. This marked a sharp escalation in tensions between the two countries, who had reportedly been in the midst of a process of disengagement from their stand-off that began six weeks ago.Both the Chinese foreign ministry and army asserted that Indian troops had provoked the violence by crossing over to their territory, but the latter explicitly cited China’s claims.“The sovereignty over the Galvan Valley area has always belonged to China,” said PLA western theatre command spokesperson Colonel Zhang Shiuli.

While a Chinese map of 1962 extends its boundary up to the Shyok river – the zone of contention today – for India, Galwan was always seen as an area where the lay of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) was not disputed, unlike in other places like Pangong Tso, where there were overlapping claims.

Therefore, it had been a rude wake-up call when India first observed Chinese troops pouring into the Galwan region in early May, leading to the first face-off on the night of May 5-6.Indian military sources had said that the Chinese build-up of troops in Galwan had been unexpected since this was usually the season for PLA to conduct exercises at their traditional grounds at Kangixwar and Xaidulla. Instead, India had claimed that China had violated the spirit of the border agreement, by not confining their troops to their traditional exercise grounds, but rather spilling them from Galwan into other areas of contention in eastern Ladakh.

Galwan has a role in historical memory of the Sino-Indian conflict as it was the first Indian post that was overwhelmed by the Chinese in summer of 1962 – and was one of the first markers of the start of the war.

However, since then, Galwan had been a relatively peaceful area of the LAC, where Indian and Chinese patrol teams did not come face-to-face unlike other contentious sections, as per Indian military sources. The situation has changed now.

Fifty-eight years after 1962, the capture of Galwan river valley provides the PLA strategic domination over positions overlooking India’s Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi (DSDBO) road, which connects Leh to the Karakoram Pass.India had started work on DSDBO road in 2001, but it was finally completed after a realignment of the section along the Shyok river last year.

At various border meetings after the stand-off, the Chinese had repeatedly raised concern about the DSDBO road – even though the Indian side had been sceptical that China was articulating the real motivation for its actions in eastern Ladakh.

The highest-level military level meeting on the current crisis was held on June 6 at Chushul between Leh corps commander Lieutenant General Harinder Singh and South Xinjiang Military Region’s Major General Liu Lin.

On June 10, Ajai Shukla had first written, in The Wire, that PLA negotiators had refused to even discuss the intrusions by their troops into Galwan river valley, instead claiming ownership over the entire area.

At the June 6 talks, the Chinese had asserted that their ownership of the entire Galwan valley, claiming that they had controlled the hills along the river for “as long as they could remember”.Shukla also wrote that by dominating the DSDBO road, China had also managed to isolate the Depsang area, where a substantial Chinese presence had also been observed.

Note: The article has been edited to add a reference to China’s 1962 map

With inputs from The Wire; ET Bureau

It was unusual in the 19th century for rivers to be named after their regional discoverers. But Galwan, and his love for exploration, stood out.

By: SANDEEP CHAUDHARY

The Servant of Sahibs | Source: Sandeep Chaudhary

Man seems to possess an inherent desire to record his presence in this world, to leave some trace of his existence,” Dr Azaz A. Baba wrote in his foreword to the autobiography of Ghulam Rassul Galwan titled Servant of Sahibs. That desire got fulfilled for Ghulam Rassul, the explorer from Leh, when the Galwan river was named after him.

This approximately 80-kilometre long river originates in the Samzungling area and flows west to join the Shyok river, which further joins Indus at Keris, near picturesque Skardu.

In 1899, Galwan, a 21-year old young explorer stood on the banks of a previously unknown river in northeastern Ladakh. He was the caravan in-charge of a British expedition to the areas north of Chang Chenmo valley.

The British had developed an interest in exploring these areas in the 1890s. They wanted to see if they could develop a caravan route through this valley and connect the Indian subcontinent to the Tarim Basin in the Xinjiang region of China. Tarim Basin mostly covered by the Taklamakan desert formed the spine of the ancient Silk Route. Now, China has invested in developing this area under Xi Jinping’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The Silk Road routes lost their significance 15th-century onwards, with the rise of the Ottoman Empire and the ensuing boycott of trade with China.

But that unknown river became the Galwan — one of the few rivers and natural formations named after regional explorers of the time. And that is the river everyone is talking about now as India-China stand-offs continue across the Line of Actual Control.

The Galwan family

Galwan talks about his maternal great-grandfather, Kara Galwan, with a lot of fondness in his autobiography. The word ‘Kara’ in Kashmiri means black and Galwan means robber. Kara Galwan operated in the Kashmir Valley during the rule of the Dogra rulers. Galwan portrays his grandfather as a sort of Robin Hood, who looted from the rich and distributed among the poor. The Maharaja’s army arrested Kara Galwan, and most of his relatives had to flee from Kashmir.

His grandfather, Mahmut Galwan fled to Baltistan along with his brother Gaffor and two sisters. A few years later, Mahmut married a Balti woman and the family moved to Leh. That Balti woman gave birth to Galwan’s mother, who was raised by her relative Gaffor Galwan, who had no children of his own. She got married to Shukur Galwan, who was raised in the same household by Gaffor. Shukur eloped to Yarkand shortly after marriage and left his young bride behind in Leh. She got married to a man named Ibrahim and gave birth to Galwan in 1878.

An explorer is born

In the year 1890, the British government commissioned a 27-year-old army officer named Captain Francis Edward Younghusband to explore the Pamirs in Central Asia. Patrick French, in his biography of Younghusband, has called him ‘The last Great Imperial Adventurer’. Captain Younghusband, who later retired as a Lieutenant Colonel, was born to a British military family in now-famous Pakistani tourist spot Murree. He joined the British army in 1882. He was made a captain in 1889, and sent to explore uncharted areas of Ladakh including areas north of Chang Chenmo valley.

He later wrote a book titled Kashmir on his service years in the Valley. In the summer of 1890, Galwan, only 12-years-old, met Captain Younghusband and accompanied him on his expedition to Yarkand. A life of exploration started for young Galwan.

Over the next decade, Galwan accompanied French, Italian and British expeditions through this mountainous corner of the subcontinent. It was the expedition to the northern areas that he led in 1899, which led to the exploration of his life, the Galwan river.

The weather is extremely harsh in that part of the world and can break strongest of humans. The temperatures can plummet to less than -30 degree Celsius. Food availability must have been scarce in that period. Galwan and his comrades, dressed in their traditional clothes, explored this cold desert for years. Like other explorers of his generation, Galwan was inspired by the idea of going into the unknown. He wrote in his autobiography that his happiness lay in exploring the territories from Yarkand to Pamirs. Galwan’s strong desire to take a shot at eternity was driven by an equally strong desire to understand the past. The man’s spirit is reflected through this song that he mentions in his autobiography —

“Don’t look up the mountains at the sun.
You will be cold: never be warm.
If look far away husband or wife,
Heart will be sorry, never be glad.
Come people, quickly down.”

From top hills to hill-tops

Galwan taught himself how to lead caravans, the nuances of mountaineering and working knowledge of Chinese and English. He owes his autobiography to the English he learnt while travelling with the sahibs. His autobiography remains a unique account of those legendary explorations by him and explorers of his generation to the Tibetan plateau, the Pamir mountains and deserts of Central Asia.

Galwan later became the Aksakal of Ladakh or Chief Native Assistant of the British Joint Commissioner (BJC). The BJC used to be the authority that controlled trade of goods and movement of caravans coming from Tibet, mainland India and Turkistan. Galwan died in 1925, two years after his autobiography was published. His life of journey and exploration lives on through the river named after him. His short journey of life can be summarised in his own words, “Everywhere he like he go. From top hills to hills tops”.

The author is an IPS officer and SSP, Anantnag. Views are personal.

With inputs from ThePrint

Casualties ‘could have been avoided’ had pacts been followed, says MEA

Accusing the Chinese troops of “attempting to unilaterally change the status quo” in the Galwan valley, the Ministry of External Affairs said the casualties “could have been avoided” had agreements made by military commanders over the past week been followed by the Chinese side.

In a statement on Tuesday night, MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the violence that claimed Indian soldiers’ lives in the Galwan valley, including that of a Commanding Officer of Colonel rank, had come despite a series of ground-level discussions on de-escalation of the month-long standoff between the two armies.

According to the statement, the talks on June 6, had been “productive” and meetings had been held “to implement the consensus reached at a higher level” on de-escalation and de-induction of troops.

Five points
At least five points in Ladakh including the Galwan Valley patrolling points, Hostprings area and Pangong Tso (lake) have been identified as flashpoints, and India’s demands had included a return to status quo ante, and the retreat of Chinese troops occupying Indian patrol areas, along with tents, vehicles and equipment. “While it was our expectation that this would unfold smoothly, the Chinese side departed from the consensus to respect the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Galwan Valley,” the MEA said. “On the late evening and night of 15th June 2020 a violent face-off happened as a result of an attempt by the Chinese side to unilaterally change the status quo there. Both sides suffered casualties that could have been avoided had the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed by the Chinese side,” it added. The MEA also said that all Indian activities were on its side of the LAC, and it expected “the same of China.” While talks were held at the area of the Galwan valley clash to defuse tensions on Tuesday, it is unclear if further diplomatic talks are planned in the aftermath of the violent incident, where the casualty figures are expected to rise. While External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is due to attend a meeting of Foreign Ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC grouping) on Monday, MEA officials would not confirm if the meeting will go ahead.

Speaking about talks, the MEA said India remains “firmly convinced of the need for the maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the border areas and the resolution of differences through dialogue.” “At the same time, we are also strongly committed to ensuring India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the Ministry added.

With inputs from The Hindu

As many as 2027 ceasefire violations by Pakistan have taken place along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir till June 10 this year, news agency PTI reported quoting officials.

New Delhi: Pakistan violated ceasefire along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir by firing mortar shells towards Indian positions, the Army said. The latest violation took place in the Naugam Sector on Tuesday night.

“On 16 June 2020, in the late evening hours, Pakistan initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation (CFV) along the LoC in Naugam Sector by firing mortars and other weapons,” the defence spokesman was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

He said Indian Army strongly retaliated to Pakistan’s unprovoked firing.

There were no casualties reported in the incident, the spokesman added.

There has been a steady increase in ceasefire violation by the Pakistan in the recent months.

As many as 2027 ceasefire violations by Pakistan have taken place along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir till June 10 this year, news agency PTI reported quoting officials.

The increased violations are being viewed by senior security officials as an attempt by Pakistan to provide fire cover to terrorists sneaking from across the border.

The ceasefire violations comes a day after Indian and Chinese troops were involved in a violent face-off in Ladakh. A Colonel and two army officers were among the 20 soldiers who were killed in the clash after “an attempt by the Chinese side to unilaterally change the status quo there”.

News agency ANI claimed that sources had confirmed 43 Chinese soldiers have been killed or seriously injured because of intercepts, though the army’s statement did not refer to this.

With inputs from NDTV