Defence
China's bridge over Pangong Lake. (@NatureDesai/Twitter)
Satellite imagery reveals that China's under-construction bridge across Pangong Tso in Eastern Ladakh is almost complete.
Although the exact date when the construction started is not known, according to experts, the first signs of erection of structures around the area started appearing in the last days of September and early October of 2021.
The bridge is coming up near the Khurnak Fort, at one of the narrowest points of the 134-km-long Pangong Lake.
The bridge will connect the northern bank of Pangong Tso Lake with the southern bank, allowing the Chinese to rapidly switch forces from one bank to the other, apart from the swift movement of supplies and material to forward areas.
This bridge is very close to the Line of Actual Control (LAC) according to India's claim — just 25 kilometers from Sirijap, which lies just east of the Finger 8 area that India claims as its own.
Since the Galwan clash, which claimed the lives of 20 brave Indian soldiers and an unknown number of Chinese soldiers, Indian and Chinese troops have been engaged in a protracted standoff that does not looks to end anytime soon.