China is once again resorting to the act of instigating India by renaming 15 places of Arunachal Pradesh on its map. China’s ministry of civil affairs issued a statement stating that they have ‘standardized’ names for 15 places in Arunachal Pradesh, to be used on Chinese maps. This is the second time China has renamed the names of places in Arunachal Pradesh. Way back in 2017, China had changed the names of six places. India responded by asserting that the Arunachal has “always been” and will “always be” an integral part of India and that assigning “invented” names does not alter this fact.
India’s response is apt and very strong. This attempt of China to try to instigate and create tension by this kind of gimmick should be at best ignored. Such an announcement in reality does not change the situation on the ground. Arunachal Pradesh will remain a part of India and the people of the state are very proud Indians. China keeps on making this kind of stunts to try to intimidate India. The government of India should better concentrate on improving infrastructure along the Sino-India border. Roads and other infrastructure need serious upgrading. The development of the border areas is the best answer to China’s repeated propaganda.