Normalization with the Asian Powers } 4 41
strategy by Indira Gandhi led to a decision to defend as far forward as pos-
sible in the eastern Himalayan region. This led in turn to the resumption of
Indian patrols south of the Thagla ridge in the summers of 1983, 1984, and
- When Indian forces arrived there in summer of 1986 as the snows in
the Himalaya melted, they found Chinese forces who had constructed semi-
permanent structures. India (then ruled by Rajiv Gandhi, Indira’s son who
took over as prime minister when his mother was assassinated in October
1984), decided to respond with a large scale exercise code-named “Operation
Chequerboard” and testing the ability of Indian forces to deploy rapidly to
forward areas of the Sino-Indian border. Three full Indian divisions were
deployed forward and supported by airdrop. High-altitude heavy-lift helicop-
ters airlifted in infantry fighting vehicles. Beijing saw the forward deployment
of heavy combat vehicles as an especially ominous sign and responded in
kind by mobilizing forces on the border. Forces on both sides took up front-
line positions and sometimes glared at one another with weapons at the ready.
Tensions rose still further in December 1986, when virtually the entire
Indian army massed swiftly in western Rajasthan on Pakistan’s borders in a
military exercise codenamed “Brasstacks.” Pakistan’s army feared an Indian
NEPALBHUTAN
(Indian protectorate)BANGLADESHMYANMARINDIATIBETAN AUTONOMOUS REGION
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINALhasaShiliguriCalcuttaChittagongIndian northeastern states;
poor, ethnically distinct,
with insurrections historically
aided by China.Cox’s BazaarDhakaBoundary claimed by
India: “McMahon Line”Boundary claimed
by China“Shiliguri
Corridor”Chumbi Valley
TawangTezpur AirbaseChabua
AirbaseBum La Pass
Se La Pass
Bomdila PassIndian DivisionF IGU R E 16-1 The Tawang Region and the Sino-Indian Military Balance