Bum La (China) : As Colonel Yang Zi Jang hoisted the flag to mark the 60th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China in this border outpost of the People’s Liberation Army at exactly 10.30 am on Thursday, he had some "special" guests: over 200 people invited from the other side of the McMahon Line.
With media reports of incursions (played down by both sides) focusing renewed attention on this border, the significance of the invitation or the visit wasn’t lost on any of the guests, which included Brigadier C P Mohanty, Tawang Deputy Commissioner Gamli Padu, a host of Army and civil officers and their families, and a number of civilians from the Indian border town of Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.
Apart from letting them in without passports, China also organised a special cultural function for the invitees. While the practice of delegations from either side crossing over to attend each other’s national days began in 2002, the warmth this time was unmistakable.
"It was a terrific feeling walking into China, and that too at a time when we in India are discussing incursions by the neighbouring country," said Jonkee Lhamu, a Tawang-based businessman. "Stepping 200 metres into Chinese territory, and that too without a passport, itself is an unforgettable experience."
The Indian flag was also hoisted, and Brigadier Mohanty — who heads the Korea Brigade of the Indian Army based at Tawang — and Colonel Jang were closeted for 10 minutes of formalities and exchange of greetings, followed by the two-hour-long cultural programme mounted in honour of the Indian delegation.
Bum La, which comprises two posts on either side of the border, is located at about 15,700 ft above the sea level. Though just 37 km from Tawang, it is a two-and-a-half hour drive from the town, on the rugged and winding Tawang-Lhasa Highway. Lhasa and Beijing are around 500 km and 4,250 km away respectively. It was through Bum La that the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 in the wake of the Chinese occupation of Tibet. It was also through here that the Chinese Army marched into India, occupied Tawang and the entire Kameng Sector, and advanced almost up to Tezpur in the Assam plains in the winter of 1962.
However, since prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s visit to Beijing in 2003, Bum La has been the setting for border personnel meetings (BPMs) between the two countries. Since 2002, it has also seen civilians and officials cross over for each other’s national days.
As young Chinese army officers lined up to get themselves photographed with young Monpa ladies from Tawang at Thursday’s gathering, there was excitement on both sides.
"I wonder why the Chinese officers are so keen on getting photographed with us," said Tenzing Chouden, a mass communication graduate from Mysore University who runs a gift emporium in Tawang.
However, Chinese officials and citizens refused to talk to the 15 mediapersons who were part of the delegation.
"I never thought relationship between the two countries was so good that we could walk in with the Indian Army to attend their national day," said Simanta Barua, a businessman from Tinsukia in Upper Assam, who got the invite through business connections in Tawang. "I think a section of the media has overplayed the incursion issue," he said.
Brigadier Mohanty too called for peace and stability. The message from his counterpart Col Yang Zi Jang was almost the same, of course in Chinese, read out in English by an interpreter.
