New Delhi: The Line of Actual Control (LAC) around eastern Ladakh received renewed attention Monday, as satellite imagery revealed that China has built a new radome structure near the disputed Finger 4 and Finger 8 areas around Pangong Tso lake. Damien Symon, a satellite imagery expert who tweets as @defestra_, shared the new information on Twitter.
Radomes are large dome-shaped structures that protect radars from bad weather while also allowing electromagnetic signals to be received without distortion. Symon also claimed that the images show under-construction solar panels and a proposed radar viewshed that ‘allows for monitoring across highlighted terrain and lake sections’.
The Sino-Indian conflict
The developments come two years after the Sino-Indian standoff in the Eastern Ladakh region around Pangong Tso erupted in May 2020. Early last year, India and China agreed to withdraw from the region and return to the status quo, resulting in numerous rounds of talks between the two sides over the disputed border areas, particularly Finger 4, where the standoff occurred.
However, ThePrint reported in January of this year that China was constructing a bridge across the Pangong Tso lake on its side of the LAC in an effort to ‘counter’ Indian army operations. It was also reported that while the standoff was still ongoing between September 2020 and mid-2021, the Chinese had managed to construct a new road to the Moldo garrison in order to avoid the visibility arc of Indian soldiers and equipment on top of advantageous heights.
ThePrint reported in May that China was constructing a second bridge at Pangong Tso that would be ‘bigger, broader, and capable of carrying armoured columns’. The new radome structure, potential solar panels, and the Pangong Tso bridge are all part of China’s broader infrastructure development efforts along the LAC, not only during the standoff but also after the disengagement process is completed in February 2021.
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