By KUNA
New Delhi : India Wednesday said that Army personnel have been moved to the countrys border with China near the trijunction with Bhutan on operational requirements and stated that talks are being held with Beijing under a mechanism for a settlement of the boundary dispute. “Movement of troops by the army is carried out as a routine based on operational requirement,” Indias Defence Minister A K Antony told Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Indian Parliament) in a written reply today to a question on whether Army had moved 6,000 troops to the Chinese border following reports of intrusions near the Bhutanese border.
The Indian Army was suitably deployed to safeguard sanctity and integrity of the country’s borders, Antony said. Maintaining that China disputes the international boundary between India and China, Indias External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said, “Since 1993, the two Governments have agreed to maintain peace and tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the India-China border areas, without prejudice to their respective positions on the alignment of the line of actual control as well as on the boundary question.” “In the meantime, pending a final settlement, both sides have agreed to clarify the LAC and to take up perceived violations through established mechanisms including the Joint Working Group, the Expert Group, border personnel meetings, flag meetings and diplomatic channels,” Mukherjee said in Lok Sabha (Lower House of Indian Parliament) today. “Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh visited China from January 13-15. PM held official talks with Premier Wen Jiabao and had separate meetings with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress of China, Wu Bangguo,” Mukherjee said.
“The two Prime Ministers welcomed the progress made by the Special Representatives in seeking a framework for settlement of the boundary question that is fair, reasonable, mutually acceptable, and based on the agreement on Guiding Principles and Political Parameters signed in April 2005,” the External Affairs Minister said.