Itanagar: Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu Tuesday interacted with jawans of the Indian Army at Tulung La pass located at about 17,600 feet above sea level in the Indo-Tibet border.
Khandu, who is on a three-day tour of the Indo-Tibet border in Tawang district, took to Twitter to share the information.
Bravo Indian Army guarding our borders at extreme heights of Himalaya. Visited Tulung la pass (17600 ft) at India-Tibet border during my 3-day tour of the border areas. A visit to remind our soldiers that they are not alone in the mountains and the whole nation is with you, Khandu said in his tweet.
The chief minister also paid tributes to the martyrs of 5 Assam Rifles at the Chhetri War Memorial near Tulung La pass.
The memorial which was inaugurated by Khandu in November last was built to recognise the ultimate sacrifices made by Lance Naik Nar Bahadur Chhetri and Riflemen Ganesh Bahadur Chhetri, Krishan Bahadur Chhetri, and Nar Bahadur Chhetri of the 5 Assam Rifles while fighting the Chinese forces near the Tulung La pass in 1975.
Your supreme sacrifice will never be forgotten. You always live in our heart and in our memory. Paid tribute to Veer Jawans of 5 Assam Rifles at Chhetri War Memorial near Tulung la pass at India-Tibet border. The brave soldiers died defending our motherland against the enemy, Khandu said in another tweet.
The chief minister, accompanied by chief secretary Naresh Kumar, commissioner (Planning) Prashant Lokhande, and other officials of the state government later met the ITBP officers and jawans at Lungur which is also near the India-Tibet border.
Sharing the information Khandu said: Humbled to meet our @ITBP_official jawans at Lungur near India-Tibet China border in Tawang district. May we never take for granted our comfort and peace while someone out there in the borders are guarding the borders in extreme conditions. Salute to our Himveer!
Earlier during the day, the chief minister met and interacted with the army personnel posted at the Omthang viewpoint (14,300 ft), Gonga Tso Lake (16,000 ft), Chuna outpost, and the Brokpas of Sulungthi valley near the international border.
The chief minister’s visit to the Indo-Tibet border comes about a month after a brief face-off was reported between the Indian and Chinese soldiers near Yangtse in the Tawang sector.
The matter was, however, resolved within a few hours following talks between commanders of the two sides according to established protocols, people familiar with the development had said on October 8.