India
oi-Vicky Nanjappa
New Delhi, February 15: Chinese soldiers have started to vacate Finger 4 on the north shore of Pangong Lake.
Chinese troops are dismantling shelters and removing other structures and this is taking place according to the withdrawal exercise along the Royal Line of Control in eastern Ladakh.
There is a good chance that the process will be completed on the north and south shores of Pangong Lake by Friday, the sources told OneIndia.
No patrolling in disputed area, Chinese PLA will move to finger 8
There is rapid movement of Chinese heavy vehicles beyond Finger 8, satellite images show.
As armored items such as battle tanks and armored personnel carriers are withdrawn from friction points on the southern shore of Pangong Tso, troops are withdrawing from the northern shore areas, sources said.
The sources said that the withdrawal of armored elements from the southern bank of Pangong Tso is almost complete and the temporary structures erected on both sides will be demolished in the coming days.
“The withdrawal process will take time as both sides are jointly conducting the verification of the withdrawal of troops and military equipment,” said a source.
Disengagement of troops and armored elements is limited to friction points where the two sides were in an eye-to-eye confrontation, sources said.
After a nine-month confrontation, the two armies reached an agreement on the disengagement on the north and south shores of Pangong Lake that obliges both sides to suspend the deployment of troops in a “staggered, coordinated and verifiable” manner.
On Thursday, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh made a detailed statement in Parliament on the separation pact.
After Pangong Tso, more tension reduction in friction points between India and China
Under the agreement, China has to withdraw its troops to the east of the Finger 8 areas on the north bank, while Indian personnel will be based at their permanent base at Dhan Singh Thapa Post near Finger 3 in the region.
Similar actions will also take place on the southern shore of the lake, Singh said in Parliament.
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