This refers to the shocking media reports that the Army wants patrol curbs along the Chinese border to be lifted. Amazingly, the reports say, the CSG (China Study Group) restrictions prevent Indian troops from going as close as possible to their own border. Even the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has to carry out patrols without weapons! This is exactly what had happened in the mid 1950s when China built a road right across our territory and India did not even know about it for two years. Jawaharlal Nehru defended himself by saying that nothing grows there — so why not just give it away?
One must also read the book, Spy on Top of the World by Stephen Wignall where the Indian Army requested a private British mountaineering expedition to do some snooping on its behalf — without the knowledge of the Indian government. The book is in fact dedicated to several Indian officers and was written only after all of them were dead. And incidentally who comprise the CSG? A bunch of babus and intelligence heads, who will slink away from their responsibility when anything goes wrong. That’s exactly what the IB did in 1962.
T R Ramaswami, Mumbai
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