Eye on China, new LAC road nears completion

A crucial segment of eastern Ladakh will have a completed strategic road realignment by next year, according to the Ministry of Defence's year-end review. The military has already been utilizing certain sections of the road. This presents an alternate route to access Depsang and Daulat Baig Oldie (DBO) within the crucial Sub-Sector North (SSN) along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. The SSN encompasses the Karakoram Pass leading to Xinjiang. A military standoff between India and China along the LAC has persisted since April 2020.

Starting from Sasoma on the Leh-Siachen base camp road, the new road goes east across the 17,800-ft-high Saser La and then downhill to Saser Brangsa, an old camping spot on the Kashmir-Xinjiang trade route. After that, the road splits in two directions: one goes east to Murgo, and the other goes northeast to Gapshan. Both roads connect to the existing 255-km Darbuk-Shyok-DBO (DSDBO) road at different places.

This fresh route adds extra access to the Sub-Sector North (SSN). The Indian Army is considering a situation where China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) might move west into the 16,000-ft-high Depsang plains in the SSN. This could endanger a part of the DSDBO road, including the Galwan Valley. The PLA might also try to block DBO, limiting access to the Karakoram Pass, or aim to reach the Saser La.