Reports have emerged suggesting that China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) was denying Indian forces access to key patrolling points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Arunachal Pradesh's Taksing area.
The PPA committee, headed by former minister and PPA chief adviser Kahfa Bengia, visited Taksing on July 10, 2026.
The PLA, the PPA found, had been denying access of one of the patrolling points since 2023.
Indian forces subsequently withdrew and have not returned, The Arunachal Times report said.
According to The Arunachal Times, one of the biggest vulnerabilities identified by the committee is the seasonal nature of Indian patrolling.
Reports have emerged suggesting that China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) was denying Indian forces access to key patrolling points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Arunachal Pradesh's Taksing area. The PLA is steadily expanding its control over traditional Indian grazing and hunting grounds, according to a fact-finding committee (FFC) of the People's Party of Arunachal (PPA). Government sources, however, on Wednesday rejected the claims.
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The PPA is a regional political party founded in Arunachal Pradesh in 1977. It currently has two MLAs in the state's 30-member legislative assembly.
The PPA committee, headed by former minister and PPA chief adviser Kahfa Bengia, visited Taksing on July 10, 2026. It also comprised PPA vice-president Kaling Jerang and secretaries Sorang Kiokam and Narah Jimmy.
The party's findings have emerged amid renewed concerns over Chinese activities along the LAC in Upper Subansiri district. Itanagar-based The Arunachal Times newspaper reported on August 10 that a four-member PPA's FFC had found that PLA troops were effectively blocking Indian access to designated patrolling points and that Chinese "incremental intrusions" were being consolidated on the ground.
The PLA, the PPA found, had been denying access of one of the patrolling points since 2023.
"The FFC described this as a clear illustration of how incremental Chinese intrusions are being consolidated on the ground," The Arunachal Times report said.
A day later, The Times of India, in its August 11 report, said the PPA described reports of Chinese intrusions in the Taksing sector as "inexplicable yet irrefutable", alleging that the intrusion followed a "well-calculated, gradual and persistent" pattern refined over several years.
ARMY JUNKED REPORTS OF PLA INTRUSION IN JUNE
Earlier in June, Nah Welfare Society (NWS), a community-based organisation from Taksing in Arunachal Pradesh's Upper Subansiri district, submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner alleging that the PLA had established camps inside Indian territory near the India-China border.
The Indian Army refuted the claims made by NWS on June 29 and called the allegations "incorrect and without any basis".
Arunachal Pradesh shares a long border with Tibet along the Great Himalayan range. China was never India's neighbouring country. The annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China that began in 1950 made the communist country India's neighbour.
TOP CABINET MINISTERS MEET OVER ARUNACHAL CLAIMS
Amid the growing clamour over the Chinese intrusion claims, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a meeting at the Defence Minister's office in Parliament house.
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Government sources on Wednesday rejected social media claims of "slow encroachment" by China in Arunachal Pradesh, asserting that the Indian Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) are "geared up to dominate the border, monitor and check Chinese activities," according to India Today TV's Manjeet Negi.
The PPA's FFC comes at a time even as India on Tuesday (August 11) rejected China's objection of New Delhi formally marking 27 locations in Arunachal Pradesh on its official maps, asserting that the northeastern state is an "inalienable and integral part of India" and that nothing could change that reality.
Responding to Beijing's criticism of the mapping exercise, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: "India's position on Arunchal Pradesh remained unequivocal".
INDIA'S PATROL ROUTE ABANDONED SINCE 2023: PPA FINDINGS
The most serious allegations by the PPA panel concern Shera 5 Point, a designated patrolling location of India.
According to The Arunachal Times, the PPA committee was told by local residents that Indian and Chinese troops had "a physical confrontation at the point in 2023".
Indian forces subsequently withdrew and have not returned, The Arunachal Times report said.
The PLA then allegedly dismantled the remaining Indian markers at the site and began preventing Indian patrols from accessing the area.
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The Times of India's report similarly noted that Shera 5 Point had remained "completely abandoned" since 2023 following a confrontation between PLA troops and the Arunachal Scouts.
According to the TOI, Chinese personnel subsequently removed symbolic Indian structures from the location and have since prevented Indian troops from accessing the area.
The PPA committee described this intrusion as "a familiar Chinese strategy — gaining ground incrementally until temporary restrictions become an established reality on the ground".
NO INDIAN FORCES' PRESENCE IN WINTERS?
The PPA panel's concerns extend beyond a single patrolling point.
During the PPA committee's visit, the team interacted with local leaders, elders, intellectuals and residents of Taksing, Maza and Galemo, besides speaking to senior defence personnel and Army jawans deployed in the sector.
According to The Arunachal Times, one of the biggest vulnerabilities identified by the committee is the seasonal nature of Indian patrolling. Regular Army patrols are largely restricted to the April-October period because heavy snowfall and extreme weather make movement difficult during the remaining months.
The PLA, however, continues its activities throughout the year, the Itanagar-based newspaper's report said.
The committee also pointed to the role of local porters who ferry supplies for Indian troops. Their services are generally suspended during the winter months, which, according to the panel, indicates a significant reduction in the Indian military presence during the period.
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The PPA panel warned that there is a seasonal vacuum along a strategically sensitive stretch of the LAC.
HAVE TRADITIONAL HUNTING GROUNDS BECOME PROHIBITED FOR ARUNACHALIS?
Another concern flagged by the committee is Nanga Pahar, traditionally used by the indigenous Nah and Mara communities for hunting and yak rearing.
The area has now become a strictly prohibited zone for local residents, according to the PPA's findings reported by both newspapers.
The Arunachal Times reported on August 10 that the restriction had effectively provided the PLA with greater freedom to push forward, describing the nature of the alleged intrusions as "calculated, gradual and persistent".
The Times of India, in its August 11 report, said the restriction on local access had enabled PLA forces to deepen their alleged encroachment activities towards the Indian side.
"... Restriction has effectively enabled PLA forces to push their encroachment activities deeper into the Indian side," the TOI reported.
For communities living in the remote frontier, the issue therefore extends beyond military patrols. Traditional access to hunting grounds, grazing areas and routes used by local residents is also at stake.
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PPA DEMANDS ROADS, BASES AND BETTER CONNECTIVITY IN THE REGION
The committee has called for a major strengthening of India's infrastructure and military presence in the Taksing region.
Among its principal recommendations is the acceleration of the ongoing Border Roads Organisation (BRO) road from Nacho to Taksing on a war footing. The PPA has also called for the proposed 68-km BRO road connecting Galemo and Pokorla to be prioritised.
The Taksing-Pokorla road via Yaja and Huri should also be completed under a strict, time-bound schedule, the panel recommended.
The Times of India reported that the PPA described the progress of the Nacho-Taksing road as sluggish and its condition as "pathetic", arguing that inadequate road infrastructure hampers the rapid movement of troops and equipment towards the frontier.
The panel has further sought the construction of a helipad at Sipi 2 (Rest Point) and permanent Army base camps at Sipi 4 and Sipi 6.
It has also called for reliable grid power to replace diesel generators and improved telephone and network connectivity at forward locations such as Maza and Galemo.
According to the PPA's FFC, poor electricity and communication facilities are major demotivating factors for both soldiers and local residents.
The Times of India quoted that the PPA president and Doimukh MLA Nabam Vivek urged the authorities to ensure that the proposed frontier highway project is not diverted away from Taksing, stressing the town's strategic importance along the LAC.
CHINA SAYS BORDER SITUATION STABLE, INDIA JUNKS CLAIMS
Amid the claims, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that the situation along the Sino-Indian border is "generally stable at the moment".
Beijing's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun made the comments while responding to media queries about whether the Chinese military has stepped-up its activity near the Arunachal border. "The China-India border situation is generally stable at the moment," Guo said on Wednesday.
Government sources dismissed the claims of "slow encroachment" by China in Arunachal Pradesh, saying the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) were "geared up to dominate the border, monitor and check Chinese activities".
The PPA's findings do not represent an official assessment by the Indian Army or the central government, but they have drawn attention to Arunachal Pradesh's most remote frontier sectors. The Indian government is yet to make any official statement on the reports.
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