Amid the ongoing military standoff along Line of Actual Control (LAC), India and China have removed some troops from the depth areas of Ladakh due to the harsh winter, Times of India reported.
However, there is no let up in the military standoff as both the armies continue to stand against each other on the frontlines.
According to TOI sources, China has de-inducted around 10,000 soldiers from its traditional training areas and around 150 to 200-km from the LAC. India has also followed suit with a "mirror reduction" in the depth areas.
Meanwhile, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and IAF Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria, on Monday, visited eastern Ladakh to inspect the operational readiness.
Even though the temperature is dipping to -30 degrees Celsius at some heights and oxygen is decreasing in the high-altitude area, the operational situations across the borders on Pangong Tso, Chushul, Gogra-Hotsprings, and Depsang Plains remains grim.
Meanwhile, India, in a humanitarian gesture, handed over the People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldier to China. The soldier had inadvertently crossed the LAC.
“There is zero reduction of troops on the frontlines and immediate depth areas. But yes, both sides are frequently rotating troops at the heights to maintain their operational efficiency in the killing weather and terrain,” TOI quoted its sources as saying.
The military standoff between the troops of India along the LAC is continuing since early April-May of 2020. During clashes between troops of India and China on June 15 in Galwan, 20 Indian soldiers and an unspecified number of Chinese soldiers were killed.
