Srinagar, December 01: A day after reports emerged about China objecting to the construction of a road in Ladakh and the government of Jammu & Kashmir stopped it, the Chinese government on Tuesday justified its stance, saying the two countries had a problem on the border which needed to be resolved.
“China has a dispute with India on the border issue. The two sides should work together to ensure peace and stability in the border area until the pending dispute is resolved. Until pending issue is resolved peace should prevail,” China’s Foreign ministry spokesperson Qin Gang said.
Chinese Army had objected to the construction of a road inside India at Demchok in Ladakh; bringing the work at the site to a halt.
The official Xinhua news agency reported that the road was being built by “authorities of Indian Kashmir in a disputed area near the line of control.”
“The construction stopped after objection from the Chinese side,” it said, confirming for the first time that the People’s Liberation Army had objected to the road construction activities.
On the stopping of work on the link road in Ladakh region after objections by the Chinese Army, the Union Minister of State for Defence Pallam Raju in capital today, “I think some of the things happen when there is a difference of perception. I guess that must be the reason.”
The road was being constructed under Centre’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) and is in the last inhabited area on the Line of Actual Control (LOAC).
The workers at the construction site were threatened by a group of people from across the border, following which, the workers fearing for their life discontinued work at the site.
Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has also confirmed that road construction has come to a halt. He has now informed the Centre about the same.
Meanwhile, Omar Abdullah’s father and National Conference (NC) chief Farooq Abdullah said that the work has been stopped due to bad weather.
Leh Deputy Commissioner Ajit Kumar Sahu has visited the area and made a report which is to be submitted to the government.
According to Chering Dorjay, Chief Executive Councillor of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, The Chinese also constructed a road on their side but India did not object to that. There is a nullah which separates the LOAC and the proximity to Chinese land is so much that we can communicate to them.
When the construction work was going on Chinese shouted at the villagers asking them to stop the work, he further added.
The road was being constructed to the area’s connectivity and to improve the employment opportunities in the area.
—Agencies