India downplays China incursion

The Army says incursions by both sides on the Sino-India border will continue till the boundary issue is resolved. Last month there were incursions into Indian territory after an alleged airspace violation.

While there's ample proof of incursions, India has played down the latest reports saying a mountain is being made out of a molehill.

One can see the markings in Cantonese left by Chinese troops in the latest incursion on the Line of Actual Control (LaC) in Ladakh.

Here the terrain is rocky and difficult, last year we watched as a lone Chinese army vehicle crept closer to the boundary; Chinese soldiers got off the truck, left tell-tale signs and went back.

It's hard to tell where the boundary begins and ends and that's why incursions are frequent which is why the Indian government insists the recent reports of boundary violations by China are being blown out of proportion.

"There is a built-in mechanism which is in place and which takes care of such incursions. And let me go on record to say that this has been one of the most peaceful boundaries that we have had as compared to other boundary lines with other countries," said SM Krishna, External Affairs Minister.

On it's part, Beijing has denied any incursions have happened but the numbers show a sharp increase which has the Army concerned and these are being taken up in local level flag meetings.

For instance in the western sector, there have been 413 incursions till just April this year.

Officials say the bottom line is that until the boundary issue is resolved, these incursions will continue with such differing perceptions of the LAC which is why foreign ministry officials insist they won't make every incident a diplmatic issue.