Gujarat-based Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU), which opened its branch in Pasighat in East Siang district in May this year, has trained sixteen Arunachal Pradesh Police (APP) officers in the Mandarin language. These police officers, deployed in border areas, have been trained in tune with the university’s purpose to provide holistic security and strategic education for overall national security. Mandarin is a group of Sinitic languages and dialects that are spoken across most of northern and southwestern China.
This is a good move and such training should be conducted regularly for the state police officials hailing from the districts which share international boundaries with China. Apart from the police officers, the state government should explore the possibility of teaching Mandarin to government employees posted near the Sino-India border. There are so many instances of Chinese incursion inside Arunachal territory. Often the PLA while carrying out the incursion writes in Mandarin to lay claims. If the government officials and police officers posted in the areas near the LAC are taught Mandarin, it will help to counter Chinese propaganda. The RRU and the state government should explore possibilities of training more officials at a bigger level.