New Delhi: India on Tuesday strongly rejected China’s objection to New Delhi’s decision to formally identify 27 places and geographical features in Arunachal Pradesh, reiterating that the northeastern state is an “inalienable and integral part of India”.
Responding to Beijing’s criticism, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India’s position on Arunachal Pradesh remained clear and unchanged.
“Arunachal Pradesh is an inalienable and integral part of India and this is a fact which is self-evident. At the same time, let me also underline that nothing can change this indisputable reality,” Jaiswal said during the weekly media briefing.
China Calls India’s Move ‘Illegal, Null And Void’
The statement came a day after China rejected India’s decision to use standard Indian names for 27 locations in Arunachal Pradesh on the Survey of India map.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Beijing does not recognise Arunachal Pradesh and refers to the region as “Zangnan”. He described India’s decision to identify the locations using Indian names as “illegal, null and void”.
China has repeatedly objected to India’s administrative and developmental activities in Arunachal Pradesh while maintaining its territorial claims over the region.
India, however, has consistently dismissed these claims and rejected China’s attempts to rename places in the state. New Delhi has maintained that changing the names of Indian locations cannot alter their status or the reality on the ground.
27 Locations Identified By India
The latest list includes several locations with strategic and historical significance along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Among them is Long Ju, which became an early flashpoint between India and China in 1959. The list also includes Maja village in Upper Subansiri district.
Several high-altitude passes have also been formally identified, including Dzo La, Riza La, Pukur La and Thag La. Thag La was the site of one of the opening battles of the 1962 India-China war.
Jairampur in Changlang district, an important logistics centre and gateway towards the eastern border region, is also among the locations included in the list.
Other places identified include Sambho Sarovar, Bara Kundun, Chhota Kundun, Dhan Bari, Pritnagar, Teritnagar, Ramnagar, Jaswant Garh, Sagar, Padma, Jyotinagar and Baisakhi.
The list further includes the Sher-e-Thapa Memorial, dedicated to 1962 war hero Trilok Singh Thapa, along with Chhota Ropuk, Bara Ropuk, Shivaji Nagar, Sunpura, Kamlang Nagar and Buddhamandir.
China’s Renaming Exercise Dates Back To 2017
China’s efforts to assign alternative names to places in Arunachal Pradesh began in 2017, when Beijing released its first list containing six “standardised names” for locations in the state.
China subsequently released a list of 15 names in 2021 and another containing 11 names in 2023.
New Delhi has repeatedly rejected these naming exercises, arguing that such attempts cannot change the geographical or political reality of Indian territory.
The latest exchange comes against the backdrop of continuing tensions between India and China along the LAC, with Arunachal Pradesh remaining a major point of contention between the two countries.
