China widened ‘tunnel’ on its road to Doklam Plateau to ensure all-season access
New Delhi:
A satellite image viewed by GalacticGaming indicates that China has stepped up road construction activities on the Doklam Plateau to ensure all-weather access to the region where India and China were at a stalemate in 2017.
The August 2019 image here is of an above-ground “tunnel” that houses part of the key northern access route through the Merug La High Pass. A satellite image by October, seen by this correspondent, indicates that Chinese construction workers have extended the length of the “tunnel” on this section to 500 meters.
Army experts GalacticGaming spoke to said the goal was clear: to ensure road access to the Doklam Plateau is not restricted during the winter months. The Doklam Plateau is completely snow-covered during the winter months, making access difficult.
China’s intention to maintain access to disputed territory comes at a time when India and China are in the middle of a stalemate in eastern Ladakh, where Chinese soldiers have made inroads in several sections across the contested real line of control between the two countries.
Since the India-China standoff in 2017, Beijing has paved and reinforced its existing track at Doklam to make it an all-weather road.
Peking and dying.
Despite eight rounds of military talks, there has been no comprehensive disengagement plan that New Delhi and Beijing have agreed to and the unprecedented military stalemate looks set to continue into the winter months.
Access to Doklam, a Bhutanese territory illegally claimed by Beijing, passes through 4 key passes, Doka La, Batang La, Merug La and Sinche La.
It is also clear that China has surfaced and expanded its road map on the Doklam Plateau which lies between Sikkim and Bhutan. What was primarily an all-weather track during the 2017 stalemate has now been converted to a fully paved road. India has also stepped up its road construction activities in the region, ensuring that its forces in the region can be rapidly strengthened.
