-Kajal Singh
LOC (Line of Control or Line of Control), LAC (Line of Actual Control) and international borders. These are the names of the two types of borders from which India’s relationship has been very old. You have heard their names often but many people will not be aware of the real definition of these lines. Let us tell you what are these two lines or borders.
LOC (Line of Control or Control Line):
The Line of Control is a 740 km long border line drawn between India and Pakistan. This line has been the subject of dispute between the two countries for the last 50 years. The present Line of Control was drawn to the then control position by stopping the war between the two countries here in 1947, which is almost the same even today. Then Pakistan was attacked in many parts of Kashmir and Indian forces came forward to protect Kashmir. In the northern part, the Indian Army had overtaken the Pakistani Army from the Kargil sector to the Srinagar-Leh highway.
In 1965, Pakistan again invaded but the fighting was stalled, due to which the status quo remained till 1971. In 1971, in response to the Bangladesh War, Pakistan again invaded Kashmir, with both countries controlling each other’s posts on both sides of the Line of Control. India received approximately 300 square miles of land from the Ladakh region in the northern part of the Line of Control. The Line of Control was restored after the peace talks as a result of the Simla Agreement on 3 July 1972.
What is LOC
• LOC means Line of Control which is not considered by the international community but is accepted by both countries.
• The LOC was initiated after a conflict between the two countries.
• After the partition of the two countries in 1947, there was a continuous ceasefire and then the LOC came into existence.
• This year, militants supported by the Pak Army entered the Kashmir Valley and were repulsed by the Indian Army.
• After this, in 1948, LOC i.e. a line of control was introduced.
• In 1971, there was a war between the two countries and then in 1972 a Simla Agreement was signed between India and Pakistan.
• It was in this agreement that the two countries formally accepted the LOC.
• The LOC is not an official boundary but is a part of military control that remains away from disputed parts.
LAC (Line of Actual Control or Line of Actual Control):
Unlike the Line of Control, the Line of Actual Control is the actual boundary line between India and China. This 4,057 km long border separates India Authorized Area in Jammu and Kashmir and China Authorized Area Aksai China. It passes through Ladakh, Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. This is also a kind of seas fire (ceasefire) line because after the India-China war of 1962, where the forces of the two countries were stationed, it was considered as the Line of Actual Control.
The 4057 km long Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China stretches from Arunachal Pradesh to Ladakh. This line is divided into three sectors. The western sector is as far as Ladakh and Kashmir. The central sector is in the areas of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh and the eastern sector in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. LAC is broadly based on the McMahon line. In 1914, the line dividing the two countries was named McMahon under the Simla Agreement between Henry McMahon, the then Secretary of State for British India, and the representative of Tibet.
Regarding the LAC, Jawaharlal Nehru said that it was drawn with a thick nib, so it cannot be said which mountain or river-stream it passes. For this reason, there remains a confusion between India and China. Both countries have their own concepts regarding LAC. But the armies of the two countries do not accept each other’s claim. According to their concepts, the armies of both countries continue to patrol from Arunachal to Ladakh. During the patrol, soldiers from both countries often move to each other’s concept areas.
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