Ladakh is an “integral and inalienable part of India”, New Delhi underlined on Tuesday after China raised objections as the Central government identified and standardised the names of 28 strategic places and geographical features in the Union Territory of Ladakh for official mapping.
No amount of denial by the Chinese side can change this established fact,” ministry of external affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement on Tuesday. The step, taken by the government in consultation with the Ladakh administration, aims at streamlining official cartography, facilitating precise identification, and fostering better public awareness of the sensitive border region. Earlier reporting noted: The home ministry had announced on October 2 that 28 places and features in Ladakh had been identified using standard place and feature names on the official Survey of India map, in consultation with the Union Territory administration and local stakeholders.
“Identifying these places formally on the Survey of India map of UT of Ladakh is aimed at facilitating their accurate recognition and better awareness among the public at large,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement today. Earlier reporting noted: Responding to media queries on comments made by the Chinese side, Jaiswal also defended the government’s move to identify the 28 places and geographical features on the official map of the Survey of India, saying the announcement by the Union home ministry was “self-explanatory”.
Earlier reporting noted: “UT of Ladakh is an integral and inalienable part of India.
Reacting to New Delhi’s step to cement its geographical records, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, as reported by The Global Times on Tuesday, made claims over the Indian territory, alleging that India’s move was illegal.
“China has never recognised the so-called “Union Territory of Ladakh” unilaterally and illegally established by India and firmly opposes India’s announcement of so-called standard names. The move is illegal and invalid and cannot change the fact that the relevant areas in the western sector of the China-India boundary have always belonged to China,” Mao said as quoted by The Global Times.
