Prime minister, Narendra Modi may not visit Siachen glacier just yet, as talks about it were wafting in and out in the defence circles for the past week. However, senior army sources say that the newly anointed Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Dalbir Singh will be visiting Leh and Siachen during 10-11 August.
Modi will also be in Leh around the same time inaugurating two power projects in Leh and Kargil. But the army sources were not in a position to confirm whether he would be visiting Siachen.
Since the vibes between India and Pakistan are currently cordial, the PM and his advisers may have thought that he would not be well-advised to visit what is called the highest battlefield of the world. Though there has not been any exchange of fire at Siachen for about a decade or so.
But the two armies of the contending countries remain ready to pick a fight if need arises. While the Indian army is located more favourably on the Saltoro ridge, along the watershed, and the glacier, the Pakistan forces are ranged across the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) stretching up to 110 kms.
In the back channel or Track II conversations the previous UPA II government had continued to conduct with the Pakistan governments — first with Asaf Ali Zardari’s and then Nawaz Sharif’s – ‘demilitarisation’ of Siachen was an important issue, the hardline within the Indian Army had held that there could not be any withdrawal from the glacier, without the Pakistan side accepting the AGPL, and notifying on maps as such.
As it appears, New Delhi and Islambad/Rawalpindi are in the process of structuring a formal dialogue between the two governments, many of the Track II interlocutors feel that the time may be ripe for a negotiated settlement of the ‘thorny issues.’
The PM’s reticence to visit Siachen at this point thus, seems geared towards not raking up a troubled legacy for Pakistan.
Modi will also be in Leh around the same time inaugurating two power projects in Leh and Kargil. But the army sources were not in a position to confirm whether he would be visiting Siachen.
Since the vibes between India and Pakistan are currently cordial, the PM and his advisers may have thought that he would not be well-advised to visit what is called the highest battlefield of the world. Though there has not been any exchange of fire at Siachen for about a decade or so.
But the two armies of the contending countries remain ready to pick a fight if need arises. While the Indian army is located more favourably on the Saltoro ridge, along the watershed, and the glacier, the Pakistan forces are ranged across the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) stretching up to 110 kms.
In the back channel or Track II conversations the previous UPA II government had continued to conduct with the Pakistan governments — first with Asaf Ali Zardari’s and then Nawaz Sharif’s – ‘demilitarisation’ of Siachen was an important issue, the hardline within the Indian Army had held that there could not be any withdrawal from the glacier, without the Pakistan side accepting the AGPL, and notifying on maps as such.
As it appears, New Delhi and Islambad/Rawalpindi are in the process of structuring a formal dialogue between the two governments, many of the Track II interlocutors feel that the time may be ripe for a negotiated settlement of the ‘thorny issues.’
The PM’s reticence to visit Siachen at this point thus, seems geared towards not raking up a troubled legacy for Pakistan.