Sheep grazing in Ladakh. (File photo for representation.)
New Delhi: Indian graziers confronted Chinese troops in Skakjung (also called Kokzhung) in eastern Ladakh near the line of actual control (LAC) earlier this month, a post on X by a councillor from Chushul, Konchok Stanzin, revealed on Tuesday. The incident is said to have occurred on January 2 near patrolling points (PPs) 35 and 36 at Kakjung under Ladakh’s Nyoma constituency.
See how our local people are showing their bravery in front of the PLA claiming that the area they are stopping is our nomad's grazing land. PLA stopping our nomads from grazing in our territory. Seems it is never a never-ending process due to different lines of perceptions. But…
— Konchok Stanzin (@kstanzinladakh) January 30, 2024
In his X post, Stanzin linked an Instagram video shot by locals which shows the graziers confronting Chinese soldiers when the troops asked them to go back, claiming it to be Chinese territory. The locals, who can be heard speaking in a Tibetan language, refused to budge and bravely confronted the Chinese soldiers and told them that they were grazing on Indian territory. They are also seen throwing rocks at the Chinese troops.
Interestingly, while Chinese soldiers with their vehicles can be seen in the video, no Indian soldiers are seen in the clip.
The incident happened amid escalating tensions between India and China in eastern Ladakh following the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s land grab of Indian territory in the region.
A similar incident had occurred in August 2022 when Chinese troops stopped Indian graziers in Ladakh’s Saddle Pass in the Demchok area, which is within the Indian side of the LAC.
After encroaching upon Indian territory in eastern Ladakh, Chinese troops have blocked local graziers’ access to traditional grazing pastures. It may be recalled, as India Sentinels had reported citing a leaked report by the-then Ladakh superintendent of police, Indian troops have been blocked from having access to 26 out of 65 patrolling points in the area. Now, the recent incident has raised concerns over the stability and security of the region.
You can view the original Instagram video by clicking here.
