Army moves 3 divisions, tanks to Ladakh sector

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Equipment, including tanks, has been moved to Ladakh from areas in the western sector where very favourable combat ratios already exist to deal with Pakistan

AN OFFICIAL

NEW DELHI: The Indian Army has moved three divisions, several squadrons of frontline tanks, additional artillery pieces and fully-ready mechanised infantry squads to the Ladakh sector, as part of its efforts to strengthen its deployments in response to fortified Chinese military presence in the region, four people familiar with developments said on Tuesday, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

The three army divisions sent to build the necessary military strength to deter possible aggressive moves by the Chinese forces deployed across the contested Line of Actual Control (LAC) account for up to 30,000 welltrained soldiers, as high-altitude deployments are being bolstered with sharp focus on contingency planning, said the first person cited above.

A large number of the troop reinforcements sent to Ladakh have been drawn from the army’s reserve formations, based in a mountainous region in north India and another state in the Hindi-speaking belt. These reserve troops have operated in the sector as part of their regular training, said the person quoted above. Soldiers may also have been pulled out from peace stations for the Ladakh role, he added.

HT is not revealing the location of the bases from where troops, weapons and equipment have been deployed to Ladakh because of security considerations. While the reserve formations have moved with their own integral artillery elements, the tanks and the infantry combat vehicles have been marshalled from multiple bases across the western sector for force augmentation in Ladakh, a second person said. Additional forces have been sent to Ladakh by road and air, he added