India on Friday identified 27 places and geographical features in Arunachal Pradesh by their standard names on the Indian map on Friday, saying the move would facilitate their accurate recognition and help raise public awareness.
"The Government of India, in consultation with State Government of Arunachal Pradesh, has identified a total of twenty-seven (27) places/features located in Arunachal Pradesh, by standard place and feature names on the official maps of Survey of India (SoI). Identifying them formally on the Survey of India map of Arunachal Pradesh is aimed at facilitating their accurate recognition and better awareness among the public at large," the official statement read.
This move was seen as India's counter to China repeatedly trying to rename places in Arunachal Pradesh.
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What are 27 places or features identified
The 27 places or features identified on the Survey of India map of Arunachal Pradesh are:
Passes:
{{/usCountry}}The 27 places or features identified on the Survey of India map of Arunachal Pradesh are:
Passes:
{{/usCountry}}Dzo La
Riza La
Pukur La
Thag La
Land areas:
Longju
Maja
Bisa
Bara Kundun
Chhota Kundun
Dhan Bari
Pritnagar
Buddhamandir
Jairampur
Teritnagar
Ramnagar
Jaswant Garh
Sagar
Padma
Jyotinagar
Baisakhi
Chhota Ropuk
Bara Ropuk
Shivaji Nagar
Sunpura
Kamlang Nagar
Monument:
Sher-e-Thapa Memorial
Lake:
Sambho Sarovar
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Significance of the identified places, features
Long Ju, located along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), served as one of the earliest flashpoints between India and China in 1959. Furthermore, Thag La, one of the most strategically significant high-altitude passes, was the site of an opening battle between Indian and Chinese forces in 1962, according to a PTI report.
Other key sites on the list included the Sher-e-Thapa Memorial.
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China's renaming of places in Arunachal Pradesh
China's practice of renaming locations in Arunachal Pradesh has been rejected by India.
The Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs released its first list of standardised names for six places in Zangnan, the Chinese name for Arunachal Pradesh, in 2017.
This was followed by a second list of 15 places in 2021 and a third list featuring 11 places in 2023, the report added.
Arunachal Pradesh govt's response to Chinese incursion reports
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Friday dismissed the reports of an incursion by China's People's Liberation Army (PLA).
According to news agency ANI, speaking to reporters, the chief minister emphasised that he would speak to the locals and the Indian Army on the allegations.
"We don't think there was an incursion as the Indian Army personnel are deployed and maintaining the territory. I have also urged the local tribes; I will hear them and also talk to the army," he noted.