After last year’s face-off with Indian forces along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, the Chinese Army has realised that it needs better training and preparation, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat said on Wednesday, reports news agency ANI. 

The Chinese soldiers are mainly enlisted for a short duration, the Chief of Defence Staff told ANI, adding that they do not have much experience of fighting in the mountain terrain of the Himalayas.  

General Rawat said, “Chinese deployment on the border with India has undergone a change, especially after incidents that happened in Galwan and other areas in May and June 2020. Thereafter, they realised that they need to be better trained and better prepared.”

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Indian and Chinese soldiers were engaged in a face-off in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan Valley from April-May last year. The faceoff turned violent after soldiers of both sides clashed, which resulted in death of 20 Indian soldiers and 4 Chinese soldiers officially. Reports suggested that the casualty tally on the Chinese side is much more. 

General Bipin Rawat told news agency ANI that Chinese soldiers are mainly from “the civilian street.” He added, “They don’t have much experience of fighting in these kinds of areas and operating in this kind of terrain.”

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Indian soldiers are very adept in fighting in the region, he said, adding that India had to keep a watch on Chinese activities in the region. “We have a lot of mountain warfare training. We operate in the mountains and continuously maintain our presence,” he said, quoted ANI.