Nearly eight years after the India–China standoff near Bhutan’s Doklam, multiple Chinese settlements appeared near the strategic location. According to a Hindustan Times report, China has built around 22 villages and settlements in Bhutan’s territory over the past eight years.
Eight out of the twenty-two villages spotted in satellite data were close to the Doklam plateau, located in Bhutan. These villages are strategically located in a valley or ridge and could increase the vulnerability of the Siliguri Corridor, also known as “chicken’s neck.” The narrow stretch is the only gateway for India to the rest of the northeastern states.
China villages in Bhutan’s territory
Jiwu is reportedly one of the largest villages constructed by China in Bhutan’s territory. According to HT, the village has been developed on traditional Bhutanese pastureland known as Tshethangkha. It is located in the western sector.
Eight Chinese settlements are strategically located in a valley or a ridge, and many are very close to Chinese military outposts or bases. So far there has been no confirmed information on the matter.
India-China Doklam standoff
The India-China border issue in 2017 was the standoff between the Indian Armed Forces and the People’s Liberation Military of China over the construction of a Chinese structure in Doklam, next to the Donglang trijunction boundary or Dongliang Caochang.
Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day-long standoff in Doklam since 16 June, 2017 after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed area by the Chinese Army. Bhutan and China have a dispute over Doklam. The MEA on 28 August, 2017 had announced that both sides were disengaging from the face-off site.
Why Chicken’s Neck is so important for India?
Chicken’s Neck is a term famously used for the Siliguri Corridor, apparently because it is one of the narrowest corridors in India. The stretch of land around Siliguri in West Bengal is geo-politial and geo-economical corridor which connects the seven states of northeast India to the rest of India.
