From Our Special Correspondant
NEW DELHI: Infiltration or intrusion by the mighty Chinese forces or just straying in by mistake by simple Tibetan herb collectors in Arunachal Pradesh ?
This was the puzzle before the members of the Parliament when the Government spoke on different tones in both Houses on Wednesday.
There is no infiltration across the Line of Actual Control but there were intrusions from China into areas which India considers to be a part of its territory, Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh said in Lok Sabha in reply to a question.
“These matters are sorted out by the area commanders of the two countries,” Dr Singh said not giving much importance to the incidents.
But speaking in Rajya Sabha the Defense Minister, Mr A K Antony said that in Arunachal Pradesh, there have been instances of intrusions by the Chinese. But in a new twist he said that a few Tibetan herb collectors inadvertently crossing over into Indian territory in the last two years.
These Tibetan intruders were apprehended and subsequently deported on completion of formalities as per the existing procedure, he said.
On ways to check infiltration, Antony said, effective border management is carried out through surveillance and regular patrolling by Army and border guarding forces.
Replying to a question on encroachment of border areas, he denied any such report but said, “However, there is no commonly delineated Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China.”
There are few areas where India and China have different perception of the LAC.
Due to perceived differences in alignment of the LAC, some cases of transgression by the Chinese patrol beyond Indian perception of LAC do occur, he added.