A Chinese soldier, who was apprehended by the Indian Army in the Demchok sector of eastern Ladakh after he had strayed across the Line of Actual Control (LAC), was handed back to China on Wednesday morning, October 21.
Corporal Wang had been apprehended by the Indian Army in the Demchok sector of eastern Ladakh on Monday after he had "strayed" across the LAC amid massive deployment of troops by the two militaries in the region following the border standoff since May.
Indian Army handed over the Chinese soldier Corporal Wang Ya Long to the Chinese Army
"Indian Army handed over the Chinese soldier Corporal Wang Ya Long to the Chinese Army at the Chushul Moldo meeting point, last night," news agency ANI wrote on Twitter on Wednesday morning.
A spokesperson for the Western Theater Command of the PLA said in a statement on Monday night that the corporal "got lost in China-India border areas on the evening of October 18 when helping local herdsmen retrieve a yak at their request".
The Indian Army had on Monday said the soldier, a Corporal in the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), would be returned to the Chinese military only after completion of formalities. "The PLA soldier has been provided medical assistance including oxygen, food and warm clothes to protect him from the vagaries of extreme altitude and harsh climatic conditions," the Army added.
Both Indian and Chinese armies have deployed over 50,000 troops each along the LAC in eastern Ladakh including in the Demchok sector following the escalation of the five-month-long military standoff that began in early May.
The incident had occurred at a time when India and China are preparing to hold another round of Corps Commander-level military talks with a focus on carrying forward their discussions on the disengagement process in eastern Ladakh. The two sides have so far held seven rounds of high-level military talks on the border face-off.
(With inputs from wires)
