Govt Rubbishes Reports Of China Building Road Near Disputed Doklam Site

The external affairs ministry said there are no new developments at the India-China military face-off site in Doklam and its vicinity since the August 28 disengagement.

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¡°The status quo prevails in this area. Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect,¡± the ministry said in a brief statement.

The ministry was reacting to recent press reports on Doklam. There were reports that although the presence of China¡¯s soldiers had thinned in the area after the disengagement process began on August 28, there were around 1,000 Chinese troops still near the stand-off area.

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Other reports also noted that China had maintained a sizable presence near the site of the Doklam standoff with India and even started widening an existing road which is at a distance of around 12 km from the area of conflict.

Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day-long standoff in Doklam since June 16, 2017, after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed area by the Chinese army. Bhutan and China have a dispute over Doklam.