India says Chinese bridge on Pangong lake is located in illegally-held area

New Delhi: The government on Friday told in Parliament that the bridge China is constructing on Pangong Lake is located in areas that have continued to be under China's illegal occupation since 1962.

It added that India has never accepted this illegal occupation and said that it expects other countries to respect India's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Replying to a question of the construction of a new bridge on Pangong Lake in the lower house of Parliament on Friday, junior minister for external affairs V. Muraleedharan said that the Government of India has taken note of the bridge.

"The Government has taken note of a bridge being constructed by China on Pangong lake. This bridge is being constructed in areas that have continued to be under the illegal occupation of China since 1962. The Government of India has never accepted this illegal occupation. The government has made it clear on several occasions that the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh are an integral part of India and we expect other countries to respect India's sovereignty and territorial integrity," he said.

The minister also said that the Government of India has noted reports of renaming some places by China in Arunachal Pradesh. "This is a futile exercise that will not alter the fact that Arunachal Pradesh has always been, is and will always be an integral part of India," he added.

He said in Lok Sabha that India's approach in talks with China over the eastern Ladakh standoff is guided by three key principles.

The principles, he said, are that both sides should strictly respect and observe the Line of Actual Control; neither side should attempt to alter the status quo unilaterally, and all agreements between the two sides must be fully abided by in their entirety.

As reported earlier, satellite images have shown that China is constructing a bridge on the north and south banks of Pangong Tso.