The Northeast & China

By Wasbir Hussain

YEAR 2000 is not 1962. Yet history cannot be brushed aside or forgotten. The disaster that was Operation Leghorn - meant to push the Chinese further behind the McMahon Line along the border with Arunachal Pradesh (then the North-East Frontier Agency) - is still fresh in the minds of the surviving old guard in the Northeast. After all, in that bloody battle in the winter of 1962 (October-November), the Chinese Frontier Guards virtually overran Arunachal Pradesh, taking even Bomdi La, within reach of the garrison town of Tezpur, in northern Assam.

Whether it was because the then Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, and his Defence Minister, Krishna Menon, wanted to go with `popular public opinion' or because of the ill-conceived determination of some generals to push the Chinese back and carry ahead India's `forward policy' on China, the fact remains that India suffered a major defeat. Had it not been for Nehru's stature, the Government would have perhaps fallen. Post- mortems revealed that the country was at a disadvantage, both militarily and logistically, to take on the Chinese at that time. While the Chinese had a road-head within three hours' trekking distance of Thag La, the main war theatre, the Indian side had its nearest road-head more than 48 hours of foot-march away.

In the 38 years that followed, India has advanced by leaps and bounds and has become a nuclear power. We now have a highly modern and, as always, a committed Army. But, geography has not changed. The terrain along the 1,030-km-long heavily-wooded border that Arunachal Pradesh shares with China's Tibet region continues to be as inhospitable as before. During the monsoon every year, large parts of Arunachal Pradesh remain cut off due to landslips snapping the tenuous road links.

Taking into account history and geography, how does one react when the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, Mr. Mukut Mithi, says during a formal on-camera interview that the Chinese Army was violating the Line of Actual Control (LAC) by crossing over into Indian territory? Of course, extremely seriously. Mr. Mithi said in an interview to a visiting journalist in mid-October (repeating his statements a few days later during an interview to PTI) that the Chinese had been crossing the LAC and that this had to be stopped, even if the former had been making the incursions without really knowing where the LAC stood. He added that the Indian Army and intelligence had recently discovered a Chinese- built mule trail in Kaila Pass in the State's Dibang Valley district. This, he said, went to prove that incursions by the Chinese were taking place ``repeatedly''. Mr. Mithi even stated that in view of the incursions, the entire border was not safe.

Mr. Mithi's statements got maximum media play, with Beijing quickly denying any intrusions. Now what was the Indian Government's reaction? A statement came from the Defence Minister, Mr. George Fernandes, that he was concerned at Mr. Mithi's revelation. ``After all, if such a statement comes from a Chief Minister, he must certainly have some basis for saying so,'' Mr. Fernandes said.

Then Mr. Fernandes visited the frontier on October 29. After meeting Army commanders, the Chief Minister and the Governor, he flatly denied that there had been any incursions by the Chinese and declared that the border was safe. In Guwahati, later that day, he stated that there was no immediate need for any bilateral dialogue with Beijing in the wake of Mr. Mithi's statements as the ``Sino-Indian border was absolutely normal''.

Now, where does Mr. Mithi stand in the wake of Mr. Fernandes' outright denial of any intrusion? Quite significantly, he reiterated his position even after Mr. Fernandes' denial. Mr. Mithi said his statement should not be misread as Chinese occupation of Arunachal Pradesh territory. ``Incursions and forceful occupation are two different things. I never said the Chinese had occupied our territory, but only mentioned that they (Chinese troops) are crossing our border and thereby violating the LAC.'' He added: ``The Defence Minister may have denied the charges as the Chinese have not occupied our land and there is not much of evidence to prove the incursions.''

Mr. Mithi's words cannot and should not be brushed aside as some odd political ploy of a shrewd politician. Because, the Chinese may not have occupied any Indian territory but could well have been making forays and then going back. If this is what is happening, it is a matter serious enough to merit proper appreciation. First, Mr. Fernandes said that if a Chief Minister makes such a statement, there ought to be some basis for it. Then, having visited the frontier, he gave a clean chit to the Chinese. If the Chinese have not intruded into Arunachal Pradesh, it is well and good. But if Mr. Fernandes or the Government is trying to play down the issue so as not to antagonise Beijing with the hope of improving Sino-Indian ties, then God help the Northeast. The same Mr. Fernandes had stated only recently that China was India's ``enemy number one'', which put New Delhi to considerable embarrassment.

Mr. Mithi could well be engaged in a deliberate campaign to create some sort of a war psychosis to attract New Delhi's attention to the lack of basic infrastructure, such as roads and bridges, in this far-flung frontier. In fact, his concern with regard to vital infrastructure, such as roads, has been echoed even by Mr. Fernandes, who during his October 29 visit brought along the Director-General of the Border Roads Organisation. Possible motives aside, a revelation such as incursions by soldiers of a neighbouring nation that had once waged a bloody war on India should not be taken lightly. After all, even now the odds are against India, in so far as the terrain is concerned. Even a dam burst in China's upper reaches is capable of creating immense devastation in Arunachal Pradesh and further down in the Brahmaputra plains. This is exactly what happened in June this year. A Chinese dam burst on the Tsangpo river (Brahmaputra in Assam) in the vicinity of Yiong (beyond the Namcha Barwa Hill) and caused sudden flash floods in upper, lower and east Siang districts of Arunachal Pradesh. The toll: 30 dead, 3,000 people hit, 15 important bridges washed away and hundreds of cattle perished. The Arunachal Pradesh Government put the damage at Rs. 100 crore with Mr. Mithi rushing to New Delhi for aid. China confirmed the dam burst but said it was not an artificial dam but a natural one, 60m-high and 2.5-km-wide, that had burst.

The Chinese military's Chief of Staff, Gen. Fu Quanyou, visited India in April 1998. The very next month, Mr Fernandes made the famous statement of China being India's ``enemy number one.'' But India quickly undertook damage control exercises with the External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, visiting Beijing in June 1999. To take the friendship further, the President, Mr. K. R. Narayanan, visited China this May.

Efforts to improve relations are one thing and turning complacent in the belief that these have already started having the desired results is another. The Northeast, perhaps, is more sensitive to the China issue than New Delhi. After all, the region has not yet forgotten Nehru's virtual farewell speech in November 1962 when he said, ``My heart goes out to the people of Assam''.

(The writer is Editor, The Northeast Daily, Guwahati.)

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Opinion
Previous : Disqualification on conviction
Next     : Diplomatic coup