It is the first incident involving the casualty of an Indian soldier in a violent clash with the Chinese Army after 1975.
The Indian Army on Tuesday said the violent border clash with Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh's Galwan Valley on Monday has claimed the lives of 20 Indian jawans, most of whom were "exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain" and later succumbed to their injuries.
Initially, the army had said one officer and two soldiers were killed in the incident, further escalating the already volatile border standoff between the two sides.
In a statement Tuesday night, the army said that 17 more soldiers who "were were critically injured in the line of duty at the stand off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain have succumbed to their injuries, taking the total that were killed in action to 20."
"Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged at the Galwan area where they had earlier clashed on the night of 15/16 June 2020," it said.
"Indian Army is firmly committed to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the nation," the statement further said.
It is the first incident involving the casualty of an Indian soldier in a violent clash with the Chinese Army after 1975 when four Indian soldiers were killed in an ambush at Tulung La in Arunachal Pradesh.
The incident took place even as the de-escalation process was underway following the talks between Indian and Chinese military commanders on June 6.
"As part of efforts to talk to the Chinese side to honour their commitment made during the June 6 talks, 16 Bihar Commanding Officer Colonel Santosh, initiated talks with the Chinese side, asking them to go back further into their territory," sources were quoted as saying by ANI.
During the talks, the Chinese side started heated arguments with the Indian delegation and started an attack on the Indian side with stones, sticks with spikes and other sharp-edged tools with an intention to cause fatalities to the Indian side, they said.
During the violent scuffles and face-off, the Chinese side outnumbering the Indian troops targeted the 16 Bihar Commanding Officer and personnel.
The scuffles continued for almost three hours. Sources said the Indian side also retaliated and caused casualties to the Chinese side.
While there is no official confirmation from either side on the number of Chinese casualties, Indian intercepts reveal that Chinese side suffered 43 casualties including dead and seriously injured, ANI reported citing sources.
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