Army prepares to fight winter as temperatures in eastern Ladakh drop below minus 10

Leh, dated 4 November 2020, Wednesday

Amid tensions with China over the Ladakh border, the Indian military is battling the cold snap of winter and Chinese troops on two fronts.

Winter has begun to show its face in Ladakh. In eastern Ladakh, where there is a confrontation with China and where thousands of Indian troops are stationed, the temperature is already falling below minus 10 to 20 degrees. However, even in this situation, Indian troops are fighting China all winter. The army has also started preparations to deal with it when it has to withdraw.

The rotation system is similar to that of Siachen for the deployment of troops here. For example, troops will be deployed here for 90 days and then they will be replaced by other troops. In these circumstances, 11000 special tents have been ordered from the US to cope with the winter. Rations, kerosene heaters, special clothes and medicines have been unloaded for the troops deployed on the tops of Ladakh hills. However, such low temperatures are likely to affect the health of the soldiers.

India has experience of deploying troops in Siachen but the number of troops in Siachen is less, while about 50,000 troops have been deployed in Ladakh.