'India, China have shown great maturity in respecting LAC'

Nov 15 India and China have shown great maturity in maintaining the sanctity of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) despite differences in perception about the boundary between the two nations said, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said in Arunachal Pradesh.

Singh was visiting India's forward areas in Bum La along the LAC with China on the second day of his two-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh.

'During my Bumla visit I have come to know that despite perceptional differences on the boundary issue both the Indian Army and the PLA (People's Liberation Army) have been sensible enough to reduce tensions on the LAC. I congratulate the Indian Army for showing great maturity in all situations,' Singh tweeted on Friday.

Bum La, located at a height of more than 4,500 meters above sea level, is strategically important for India because it was through this pass that China's People's Liberation Army began an invasion in 1962.

Singh interacted with Indian Army troops deployed in the mountainous region.

'Visited the forward areas in Bumla near Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. Also, had a wonderful interaction with the brave jawans and officers of the Indian Army. The Army is securing India's frontiers even in the most challenging environment,' he said in another tweet.

Singh paid tributes to Param Vir Chakra Subedar Joginder Singh, martyred in the 1962 Sino-Indian War, at a memorial set up in his honour in Bum La. Later on Friday, Singh will inaugurate a bridge across the Sisseri River that has been constructed by the Border Roads Organisation.

( With inputs from IANS )