Less than a month after the clash between Indian and Chinese troops near Tawang on the line of actual control, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is in Arunachal Pradesh to flag off an important infrastructure project
Singh will be the chief guest at a ceremony when the strategically important Siyom bridge will be opened. This is in the eastern part of the state, on the Along-Yingkiong Road, further ahead from Dibrugarh. It is a 100-metre bridge.
The bridge and other infrastructure projects that the Border Roads Organisation have worked on in this area are of considerable help to the locals in the area and of course, the Army and other security forces. Such projects are particularly important as the Chinese have built up their side of the line of actual control, in terms of roads, airports and railway tracks. It is important to have similar efforts on the Indian side in any case and also because of the Chinese threat.
The presence of the Defence Minister of India in northeastern Arunachal Pradesh is also a message to China. Arunachal Pradesh is a part of India and has been so for 75 years.