Killer avalanches

How many scores of precious lives have been consumed by the deadly avalanches in the 19600 feet above sea level range of Siachin Glacier, which is turned into the world’s highest battleground? Since 1984, India and Pakistan have been battling for the control of these strategic snow-bound heights of the western Himalayas. In that year, India had preempted an adventurous bid by Pakistan to catch India napping and take into its control this strategic point that would have given her extraordinary facility of linking up with the Chinese in Nubra valley. Smart Indian army officers and jawans thwarted the schematics of Pakistani military planners, and, in a swoop unprecedented in the history of mountain warfare, took control of the entire region to the utter surprise and dismay of Pakistan. Overlooking the Chinese movements across the border and keeping an eye over any nefarious design of China, the alert India troops have been keeping day and night vigil in most inclement weather conditions when the night temperature falls to -42 degrees and the day temperature to -25 degrees. One cannot even imagine the super Siberian weather conditions and its accompanied hardships with which our army jawans are faced; but they remain undaunted while ensuring security of the frontier of the northern Himalayan frontier of India.
Ten army jawans including a JCO of 19 Madras Regiment have been declared dead buried under an avalanche. Last month four soldiers of 3 Ladakh Scouts were killed when their patrol party was hit by a snow avalanche at the Southern Glacier on January 3 while they were performing the regular duty and the patrol came under an avalanche. Despite the fact that avalanche forecasting system is in place yet the nature in the Himalayan heights is unpredictable. The army and the Air Force lifted highly specialized equipment and personnel immediately when the news of the tragedy came in. For two days they made frantic effort to rescue the jawans but did not succeed. Finally the army announced with great sorrow the death and loss of ten jawans in the avalanche. We salute the departed soldiers, and we hold their sacred memory as a trust. They have made supreme sacrifice for the defence of the country. We share the grief of the bereaved 19 Madras as well as the family of the departed soldiers.
A number of times, Indian and Pakistani leaders talked about the possibility of demilitarizing Siachin Glacier and thus sparing tragic death of soldiers of both countries in the harshest climatic conditions. But there was no break through in the stymied talks. Though at several times Pakistan took the initiative of opening dialogue with India on Siachin by detaching it from overall Kashmir issue. But it failed to give dependable plan of demilitarization. All that Pakistan wanted was that India pull back her forces from the Glacier and leave it unguarded without Pakistan accepting the commitment of not misusing the peace stance of India. Talks failed each time. Just possible that Pakistan may once more try to reopen exclusive talks on Siachin but the apprehensions of India remain and Pakistan is in no mood of responding to those apprehensions. In such a situation, India is left with no option but to maintain her military presence at the world’s highest battlefield and take no chance with the security of her border.
It is true that during the British rule of India, the Siachin Glacier heights were left unattended and the British had no compulsion to establish military posts. The reason is that for them only China could be the adversary. But at that point of time China was not at all in a strong and assertive position to hobnob with the border as she is doing now. China was busy with her struggle for liberation. Moreover, the British had tacitly supported Tibet as the buffer between British India and China. But now the buffer is gone, China has illegally occupied more than five thousand square kilometers of Indian Territory in Siachin area, and, additionally Pakistan has illegally gifted away a large chunk of area in Siachin to her buddy which actually belongs to India… Moving a step further, Pakistan has almost leased out Gilgit and Baltistan to China to do whatever they like with the area in the name of development. Thus Pakistan has made it unavoidable for India to maintain her military presence at the heights in Siachin Glacier range. That is the logic behind India’s massive effort of guarding her northern frontier.

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