No new Corps HQ in Northeast
With the Indian Army raising two new mountain divisions (about 30,000 troops) to bolster defence preparedness against China, the ministry of defence (MoD) has decided not to establish a new Corps headquarters in the northeast but to instead augment the strength of the existing Corps.
“The two mountain divisions will be earmarked to existing Army Corps, thereby boosting the number of Army divisions in the Corps,” top ministry of defence sources have said.
The Government of India was understood to be considering a proposal earlier for establishment of a mountain strike corps but it is now unclear whether this will materialise in the near future.
Currently, there are three Indian Army corps in the northeastern part of the country — the Dimapur-based 3 Corps, the Tezpur-based 4 Corps and the Siliguri-based 33 Corps.
Kolkata is the headquarters of the Eastern Command.
It was noted at the recently-concluded Army Commanders’ Conference that “China is aggressively building up and modernising its military capability” and that India needs to “enhance defence preparedness adequately and remain vigilant and alert at all times”. India is already developing about 35 air-fields in the northeast and other areas that are in close proximity to the border with China so that the Indian Air Force can react in the event of any sudden external aggression from across the border.
India has been observing how China is rapidly building up its military infrastructure, including roads in its border areas with India, which will prove to be immensely useful to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
India has also frozen defence exchanges with China for the time-being.
In recent years, there have also been reports of transgressions by border patrols of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) across the Sino-Indian Line of Actual Control (LAC).
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