Army Sources Report Complete Troop Disengagement in Eastern Ladakh, Diwali Sweets Exchanged
New Delhi, Oct. 30 (PTI) — In response to a significant agreement reached between China and India, troop disengagement at two places of friction at Demchok and Depsang Plains in eastern Ladakh has been completed, and patrolling will soon start at these locations, Indian Army sources said on Wednesday. They stated that tomorrow is Diwali, when the parties will exchange sweets. According to the sources, post-disengagement verification is underway, and ground commanders will choose patrolling tactics. According to an Army insider, discussions will go on at the level of the local commander. According to Army officials here, the process should be finished by October 28 or 29. This was said on October 25. According to them, the framework of the agreement was first signed at the diplomatic level before military-level discussions took place. They also stated that the specifics of the deal were hammered out during the Corps Commander-level discussions that were concluded last week. Then, in accordance with the agreements reached between the two sides, Indian troops started to withdraw their equipment to rear positions in these regions. The procedure comes after the two nations reached a consensus on patrolling and troop disengagement along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, which was a significant stride toward ending the more than four-year deadlock. After a violent battle in the Galwan Valley in June 2020—the most significant military confrontation between the two Asian nations in decades—their relations had taken a fall. Earlier, sources stated that it was anticipated that the areas and patrolling status will return to their pre-April 2020 levels.
