Indian Army uses 'tunnel defences' in Ladakh against PLA

The Indian Army has got deep into Chinese warfare tactics manuals and used “tunnel defences” to pre-empt any further transgressions from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). This was the first time since 1962 when the Indian Army troops along with Special Frontier Force (SFF) occupied positions on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), on August 29-30, south of Pangong Tso lake which is on the Kailash Range ridgeline. Indian Army has already called the PLA energy weapon report fake. In the Second Sino-Japanese war, the Chinese forces have successfully used tunnel defences against Japanese. The Vietcong have used the same tactics against American forces in the guerrilla war and North Korean Army in Korean war in the 1960s. It was reported that the PLA has built tunnel shelters to store aircraft at Lhasa air base and underground pens to store nuclear ballistic missile submarines in Hainan Islands which lie in the South China Sea. According to senior military commanders, the Indian Army is using large diameter Hume reinforced concrete pipes in dug in tunnels in order to defend the troops from enemy attack and surprise the enemy if the need arises. The newly reinforced concrete pipes are six to eight feet diameter which allows troops to easily locomote underground from one location to another without being exposed to enemy fire. Another advantage of tunnels is that they can be heated and can protect the troops from polar temperatures and snow blizzards. It is expected that the ninth round of India-China military dialogue to disengage and de-escalate from the contested points is expected to soon take place. The Indian Army is planning to defend the LAC from any further trespass by the PLA. The Indian security planners are keeping in mind that the restoration of status quo ante has to begin with the Chinese who started the entire build-up from May 2020 by trespassing on the north banks of Pangong Tso. The PLA made similar moves in the Galwan river valley and Gogra-Hot Springs area near Kongka La. Other than defending the Ladakh LAC, the Indian Army is also keeping a close eye on PLA moves in Central, Sikkim and Eastern sectors as the Chinese army is continuously building military infrastructure in Tibet.